Chernobyl exposure as stressor during pregnancy and hormone levels in adolescent offspring.
BACKGROUND
Animal research suggests a programming effect of prenatal stress in the fetal period, resulting in disruptions in behavioural and neuromotor development. Physiological changes that mediate these effects include alterations in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and in testosterone levels. This human study focuses on changes related to these physiological systems after prenatal stress exposure.


METHODS
We examined the potential effect of prenatal stress associated with the Chernobyl disaster in an ongoing genetic epidemiological study in Finland. One birth cohort of twins (n = 121 twin pairs) was exposed in utero to maternal stress, and their saliva cortisol and testosterone levels at age 14 were compared with twins (n = 157 twin pairs) born one year later.


RESULTS
Cortisol levels in both sexes and testosterone levels among females were significantly elevated after prenatal exposure to maternal stress from the second trimester onwards, compared to reference groups of non-exposed adolescents. Exposure explains 3% of variance (p<0.05) in cortisol levels and 18% of variance in testosterone levels (p<0.001). No significant differences were found for exposure from either first or third trimester onwards.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results suggest that prenatal exposure to maternal stress in the second trimester of pregnancy may have resulted in prenatal programming of physiological systems relating to cortisol and testosterone levels.
Huizink
A C
AC
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. a.c.huizink@erasmusmc.nl <a.c.huizink@erasmusmc.nl>
Bartels
M
M
Rose
R J
RJ
Pulkkinen
L
L
Eriksson
C J P
CJ
Kaprio
J
J
D000293:Adolescent; D047852:Chernobyl Nuclear Accident; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism*; D007030:Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System; D008297:Male; D018811:Maternal Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects; D010913:Pituitary-Adrenal System / Q000502:physiology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000209:etiology*; D011264:Pregnancy Trimesters; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000523:psychology; D011627:Puberty / Q000378:metabolism; D012463:Saliva / Q000737:chemistry*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000209:etiology*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000378:metabolism*
D013739:Testosterone; D006854:Hydrocortisone