Organophosphate chemicals have a wide variety of applications and are used as flame retardants, pesticides, plasticizers, and nerve gases.

This use was discontinued after children wearing fabrics treated with a very similar compound, tris(2,3-dibromopropyl) phosphate, were found to have mutagenic byproducts in their urine.

Diverse environmental samples, ranging from surface water to wildlife tissues, have been found to contain TDCPP.

[7] The highest levels of contamination are generally near urban impacted areas; however, samples from even relatively remote reference sites have contained TDCPP.

[15][16] Humans are thought to be exposed to TDCPP and other flame retardants through several routes, including inhalation, ingestion, and skin contact with treated materials.

Compared to adults, children spend more time indoors and closer to the floor, where they are exposed to higher amounts of dust particles.

Many organophosphates, especially those designed to act as nerve agents or pesticides, bind with the active site on acetylcholinesterase, preventing it from breaking down acetylcholine.

[26] Animals that were given very high doses (>1 g/kg/day) exhibited clinical signs of organophosphate poisoning, including muscle weakness, loss of coordination, hyperactivity, and death.

[2] In 2011, TDCPP was listed as a carcinogen under California Proposition 65, a law that identifies and regulates chemicals determined by the California Environmental Protection Agency ‘to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm.’[28] Men living in homes with high concentrations of TDCPP in house dust were more likely to have decreased sperm counts and increased serum prolactin levels.

Chickens exposed to TDCPP as embryos developed abnormally: Exposure to 45 ug/g resulted in shorter head-to-bill lengths, decreased body weight, and smaller gallbladders, while 7.64 ug/g lowered free thyroxine (T4) levels in the blood.

[35] TDCPP exposure was found to alter mRNA expression of several genes that regulate thyroid function in zebrafish embryos and larvae.

Disruptions to the thyroid system of either the mother or the fetus during early brain development are associated with lower IQ scores and increased risk for ADHD or other neurobehavioral disorders.