Low dose organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls predict obesity, dyslipidemia, and insulin resistance among people free of diabetes

• Published in: PloS one 2011-01, Vol.6 (1), p.e15977
• Main Authors: Lee, Duk-Hee, Steffes, Michael W, Sjödin, Andreas, Jones, Richard S, Needham, Larry L, Jacobs, Jr, David R
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abnormalities; Adipose tissue; Adult; Agrochemicals; Biphenyl; Bisphenol-A; Blood; Blood cholesterol; Body mass; Body mass index; Body size; Body weight; Cardiorespiratory; Cardiovascular diseases; Case-Control Studies; Chlorides; Chlorinated solvents; Cholesterol; DDE; Diabetes; Diabetes mellitus; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2; Diabetes therapy; Dyslipidemia; Dyslipidemias - etiology; Environmental Exposure - adverse effects; Environmental Pollutants - blood; Environmental Pollutants - toxicity; Evaluation; Exposure; Female; Health risk assessment; Heart diseases; Hexachlorobenzene; High density lipoprotein; Homeostasis; Hormones; Humans; Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated - toxicity; Insulin; Insulin Resistance; Low density lipoprotein; Low density lipoproteins; Male; Measurement; Medicine; Metabolic disorders; Nitrous oxide; Obesity; Obesity - etiology; Organic compounds; Organochlorine pesticides; Overweight; Oxychlordane; PCB; PCB compounds; Persistent organic pollutants; Pesticides; Pesticides - blood; Pesticides - toxicity; Pollutants; Polychlorinated biphenyls; Polychlorinated Biphenyls - blood; Polychlorinated Biphenyls - toxicity; Predictive control; Risk Factors; Statistical analysis; Statistics; Triglycerides; Type 2 diabetes; Young Adult
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0015977

There is emerging evidence that background exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are important in the development of conditions predisposing to diabetes as well as of type 2 diabetes itself. We recently reported that low dose POPs predicted incident type 2 diabetes in a nested case-control study. The current study examined if low dose POPs predicted future adiposity, dyslipidemia, and insulin resistance among controls without diabetes in that study. The 90 controls were diabetes-free during 20 years follow-up. They were a stratified random sample, enriched with overweight and obese persons. POPs measured in 1987-88 (year 2) sera included 8 organochlorine (OC) pesticides, 22 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and 1 polybrominated biphenyl (PBB). Body mass index (BMI), triglycerides, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and homeostasis model assessment value for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) were study outcomes at 2005-06 (year 20). The evolution of study outcomes during 18 years by categories of serum concentrations of POPs at year 2 was evaluated by adjusting for the baseline values of outcomes plus potential confounders. Parallel to prediction of type 2 diabetes, many statistically significant associations of POPs with dysmetabolic conditions appeared at low dose, forming inverted U-shaped dose-response relations. Among OC pesticides, p,p'-DDE most consistently predicted higher BMI, triglycerides, and HOMA-IR and lower HDL-cholesterol at year 20 after adjusting for baseline values. Oxychlordane, trans-nonachlor, and hexachlorobenzene also significantly predicted higher triglycerides. Persistent PCBs with ≥7 chlorides predicted higher BMI, triglycerides, and HOMA-IR and lower HDL-cholesterol at year 20 with similar dose-response curves. Simultaneous exposure to various POPs in the general population may contribute to development of obesity, dyslipidemia, and insulin resistance, common precursors of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Although obesity is a primary cause of these metabolic abnormalities, POPs exposure may contribute to excess adiposity and other features of dysmetabolism.