Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2014 Mar;13(3):330-8.
doi: 10.1016/S1474-4422(13)70278-3. Epub 2014 Feb 17.

Neurobehavioural effects of developmental toxicity

Philippe Grandjean  1 , Philip J Landrigan  2
Affiliations
Review

Neurobehavioural effects of developmental toxicity

Philippe Grandjean et al. Lancet Neurol. 2014 Mar.

Abstract

Neurodevelopmental disabilities, including autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia, and other cognitive impairments, affect millions of children worldwide, and some diagnoses seem to be increasing in frequency. Industrial chemicals that injure the developing brain are among the known causes for this rise in prevalence. In 2006, we did a systematic review and identified five industrial chemicals as developmental neurotoxicants: lead, methylmercury, polychlorinated biphenyls, arsenic, and toluene. Since 2006, epidemiological studies have documented six additional developmental neurotoxicants-manganese, fluoride, chlorpyrifos, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, tetrachloroethylene, and the polybrominated diphenyl ethers. We postulate that even more neurotoxicants remain undiscovered. To control the pandemic of developmental neurotoxicity, we propose a global prevention strategy. Untested chemicals should not be presumed to be safe to brain development, and chemicals in existing use and all new chemicals must therefore be tested for developmental neurotoxicity. To coordinate these efforts and to accelerate translation of science into prevention, we propose the urgent formation of a new international clearinghouse.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Effect of neurotoxicants during early brain development
Exposures in early life to neurotoxic chemicals can cause a wide range of adverse effects on brain development and maturation that can manifest as functional impairments or disease at any point in the human lifespan, from early infancy to very old age.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Functional MRI scans show abnormal activation in the brain
Average activation during finger tapping with the left hand in three adolescents with increased prenatal methylmercury exposure (A) and three control adolescents (B). The control participants activate the premotor and motor cortices on the right, whereas participants exposed to methylmercury activate these areas bilaterally.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Bloom B, Cohen RA, Freeman G. Summary health statistics for U.S. children: National Health Interview Survey, 2009. Vital Health Stat 2010. 10:1–82. - PubMed
    1. Landrigan PJ, Lambertini L, Birnbaum LS. A research strategy to discover the environmental causes of autism and neurodevelopmental disabilities. Environ Health Perspect. 2012;120:a258–60. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bellinger DC. Interpreting epidemiologic studies of developmental neurotoxicity: conceptual and analytic issues. Neurotoxicol Teratol. 2009;31:267–74. - PubMed
    1. Gould E. Childhood lead poisoning: conservative estimates of the social and economic benefits of lead hazard control. Environ Health Perspect. 2009;117:1162–67. - PMC - PubMed
    1. National Research Council . Scientific frontiers in developmental toxicology and risk assessment. National Academies Press; Washington, DC: 2000. - PubMed

MeSH terms