![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/James.Burket.2.jpg\")
<\/a>Dr. James Burkett, an assistant professor of neuroscience in the UToledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences and the published study\u2019s corresponding author.<\/p><\/div>\n
Pyrethroids are some of the most widely used insecticides in the country, appearing in both consumer products and industrial preparations.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you have someone who comes and sprays in your house, this is likely what they\u2019re spraying. It\u2019s used in landscaping, it\u2019s what they fog in the streets for mosquitos. It\u2019s everywhere,\u201d said Dr. James Burkett, an assistant professor of neuroscience in the UToledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences and the paper\u2019s corresponding author. \u201cOur study, however, adds to the evidence that these chemicals might not be as safe for children and pregnant women as we once believed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Interest in a possible link between autism and pyrethroids has grown after several epidemiological studies documented higher rates of neurodevelopmental disorders in areas where the pesticides were used.<\/p>\n
The new UToledo-led research sought to build on those population-based studies by analyzing the specific behavioral changes attributable to low-level exposure to pyrethroids.<\/p>\n
Working with a team that included scientists from Columbia, Emory and the University of Southern California, Burkett examined the offspring of female mice who were exposed to small doses of the pyrethroid insecticide deltamethrin before, during and immediately after pregnancy.<\/p>\n
The researchers found those mice exhibited increased hyperactivity and repetitive behaviors, less vocalization and were more likely to fail basic learning tests compared to controls.<\/p>\n
The young mice also experienced disruptions in their dopamine system.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are all similar to symptoms human patients with neurodevelopmental disorders might have,\u201d Burkett said. \u201cWe are not saying these mice have autism or that they have ADHD. That\u2019s not the goal here. What we are saying is that something in their brain has been altered by this exposure and it\u2019s resulting in the same kinds of behaviors that we see in children with autism.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr. Gary Miller, vice dean for research strategy and innovation at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and a co-author on the study, said the research builds on prior efforts to identify other potentially harmful pest control chemicals.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have reduced our exposures to many classes of dangerous pesticides over the past few decades through restrictions and regulations,\u201d Miller said. \u201cThis study adds to a growing body of literature that the widely used pyrethroids are not without adverse effects and should be further evaluated for their safety.\u201d<\/p>\n
The prevalence of autism in the United States has risen significantly over the past two decades, rising from one in 150 children in 2000 to one in 44 children in 2018, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/p>\n
Some of that increase is being driven by more awareness of autism spectrum disorder and better diagnostic processes; however, scientists still don\u2019t know what causes most cases of autism.<\/p>\n
\u201cResearch has traditionally focused on genetics, but it\u2019s come to be appreciated that there\u2019s also a significant environmental element,\u201d Burkett said. \u201cUnfortunately, those factors are very poorly understood. That\u2019s why this kind of research is so important. You can\u2019t change someone\u2019s genetics, but you can address environment factors.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pyrethroids are not the only class of pesticides that have been linked to autism, and scientists generally agree that development of the condition requires more than one single trigger.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis research represents a piece of the puzzle. It is not definitive proof that the pesticide is unsafe or directly causing autism in humans,\u201d Burkett said. \u201cIt may, however, suggest that the safe level of the pesticide needs to be revisited for pregnant women and children.\u201d<\/p>\n
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