title: Effects of prenatal exposure to endocrine disruptors and toxic metals on the fetal epigenome.
abstract: Exposure to environmental contaminants during pregnancy has been linked to adverse outcomes at birth and later in life. The link between prenatal exposures and latent health outcomes suggests that these exposures may result in long-term epigenetic reprogramming. Toxic metals and endocrine disruptors are two major classes of contaminants that are ubiquitously present in the environment and represent threats to human health. In this review, we present evidence that prenatal exposures to these contaminants result in fetal epigenomic changes, including altered global DNA methylation, gene-specific CpG methylation and microRNA expression. Importantly, these changes may have functional cellular consequences, impacting health outcomes later in life. Therefore, these epigenetic changes represent a critical mechanism that warrants further study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences & Engineering, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
authors.forename: Paige A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Bommarito
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences & Engineering, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences & Engineering, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.|Curriculum in Toxicology, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27516, USA.
authors.forename: Rebecca C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Fry
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019175:DNA Methylation; D047108:Embryonic Development; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors / Q000633:toxicity*; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000633:toxicity*; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000235:genetics; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D052244:Endocrine Disruptors; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D035683:MicroRNAs
keywords: DNA methylation; endocrine disruptors; environmental exposure; epigenetics; fetal epigenome; in utero; prenatal; toxic metals