Lead poisoning can be transmitted over two generations

Exposure to lead during pregnancy does not only affect the mother and her child. Lead poisoning can also be seen in grandchildren, reveals american study published in Scientific Reports end of September.

During pregnancy, small amounts of lead can cross the placenta and poison the baby. This passage between mother and child can alter fetal development and the course of pregnancy.

Discovery

Previous work has shown that exposure to lead causes epigenetic changes. These are not genetic mutations, they do not alter the DNA sequence. By adding certain molecular groups, epigenetic changes modulate the activity of certain genes. Transmitted from parents to children, these modifications are reversible unlike genetic mutations.

However, until now, scientists believed that these changes did not pass over two generations. The work of Wayne State University is the first to show that these changes associated with lead exposure can be passed on to grandchildren. To arrive at this discovery, the researchers analyzed blood samples collected from 35 mother-child couples from the state of Michigan.

Notifiable disease

In France, a survey carried out by the French Institute for Public Health Surveillance in 2008-2009 shows that the number of children aged 1 to 6 with lead poisoning has been divided by 20 since 1995. This steady decline was possible thanks to the rehabilitation of buildings, the elimination of leaded fuels, the treatment of public water or further decrease in lead concentrations in food. Despite everything, lead poisoning remains a notifiable disease in minor children requiring urgent intervention.
Since June 8, 2015, doctors must alert health agencies if a child has a blood lead level (or blood lead level) is 50 μg / L. “An intervention threshold not to be confused with a toxicity threshold”, emphasizes Inserm. In fact, much lower concentrations affect many children and are also harmful.