title: Agent Orange Exposure and 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-Dioxin (TCDD) in Human Milk.
abstract: Agent Orange was sprayed in parts of southern Vietnam during the U.S.-Vietnam war and was a mixture of two chlorophenoxy herbicides. The mixture was contaminated with 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD). TCDD and other dioxins and furans are measurable in the milk of Vietnamese women. We explored whether the TCDD in milk from these women was from Agent Orange and whether lactational exposure can be a mode of transgenerational effects of TCDD from Agent Orange. A review of the world's literature on milk concentrations of polychlorinated compounds showed the presence of TCDD and other dioxins and furans in all countries that have been assessed. The congener profile of these chemicals, that is, the proportion of different congeners in the sample, can be used to assess the source of milk contamination. Measurements in most countries, including contemporary measurements in Vietnam, are consistent with non-Agent Orange exposure sources, including industrial activities and incineration of waste. Models and supporting human data suggest that TCDD from breastfeeding does not persist in a child past adolescence and that the adult body burden of TCDD is independent of whether the individual was breast- or bottle-fed as a child. These findings suggest that exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam did not result in persistent transgenerational exposure through human milk.
authors.affiliation: Scialli Consulting LLC, Washington, District of Columbia.|Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, District of Columbia.|Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, District of Columbia.|Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, District of Columbia.
authors.forename: Anthony R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Scialli
authors.affiliation: M.E. Ginevan & Associates, Silver Spring, Maryland.
authors.forename: Deborah K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Watkins
authors.affiliation: M.E. Ginevan & Associates, Silver Spring, Maryland.
authors.forename: Michael E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Ginevan
mesh_terms: D015085:2,4,5-Trichlorophenoxyacetic Acid / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D015084:2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D000328:Adult; D000075182:Agent Orange; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000032:analysis*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000737:chemistry*; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D014744:Vietnam
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; D015084:2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid; D000075182:Agent Orange; D015085:2,4,5-Trichlorophenoxyacetic Acid
keywords: Agent Orange; TCDD; Vietnam; dioxins; lactation; milk; tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin