Several environmental oestrogens are also anti-androgens
P Sohoni,John P. Sumpter +1 more
TLDR
It is shown that many of the so-called 'environmental oestrogens' also possess anti-androgenic activity, demonstrating that hormone-mimicking chemicals can have multiple hormonal activities, which may make it difficult to interpret their mechanisms of action in vivo.Abstract:
There is presently considerable interest in endocrine disruption which is a new area of endocrinology concerned with chemicals that mimic hormones, in particular sex steroids. It has been hypothesised that exposure to such chemicals may be responsible for adverse effects in both humans and wildlife. Until now, chemicals that mimic oestrogens (so-called xenoestrogens) have been the main focus of endocrine disruption research. However, recent evidence suggests that many abnormalities in the male reproductive system may be mediated via the androgen receptor. By blocking androgen action, exposure to an anti-androgen may cause changes similar to those associated with oestrogen exposure. We have used in vitro yeast-based assays to detect oestrogenic, anti-oestrogenic, androgenic and anti-androgenic activities in a variety of chemicals of current interest. We show that many of the so-called 'environmental oestrogens' also possess anti-androgenic activity. The previously reported anti-androgenic activities of vinclozolin and p,p'-1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl) ethylene (DDE) were confirmed. We also found that o,p'-1,1,1,-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane (DDT), bisphenol A and butyl benzyl phthalate were anti-androgenic. However, not all xenoestrogens are also anti-androgenic, because nonylphenol was found to be a weak androgen agonist. Our results demonstrate that hormone-mimicking chemicals can have multiple hormonal activities, which may make it difficult to interpret their mechanisms of action in vivo. Although not a specific objective of this study, our results also demonstrate that yeast-based assays are powerful tools with which to investigate both agonist and antagonistic hormonal activities of chemicals.read more
Citations
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
Hormones and endocrine-disrupting chemicals: Low-dose effects and nonmonotonic dose responses
Laura N. Vandenberg,Theo Colborn,Tyrone B. Hayes,Jerrold J. Heindel,David R. Jacobs,Duk Hee Lee,Toshi Shioda,Ana M. Soto,Wade V. Welshons,R. Thomas Zoeller,John Peterson Myers +10 more
TL;DR: It is concluded that when nonmonotonic dose-response curves occur, the effects of low doses cannot be predicted by the effects observed at high doses, and fundamental changes in chemical testing and safety determination are needed to protect human health.
Journal ArticleDOI
Sex determination and sex differentiation in fish: an overview of genetic, physiological, and environmental influences
TL;DR: The lability of sex-determination systems in fish makes some species sensitive to environmental pollutants capable of mimicking or disrupting sex hormone actions, and such observations provide important insight into potential impacts from endocrine disruptors, and can provide useful monitoring tools for impacts on aquatic environments.
Journal ArticleDOI
Bisphenol A and human health: a review of the literature.
TL;DR: The growing human literature correlating environmental BPA exposure to adverse effects in humans, along with laboratory studies in many species including primates, provides increasing support that environmental B PA exposure can be harmful to humans, especially in regards to behavioral and other effects in children.
Journal ArticleDOI
Bisphenol-A and the Great Divide: A Review of Controversies in the Field of Endocrine Disruption
TL;DR: This review has covered the above-mentioned controversies plus six additional issues that have divided scientists in the field of BPA research, namely: mechanisms of bisphenol-A action; levels of human exposure; 3) routes of human Exposure; 4) pharmacokinetic models of Bpa metabolism; 5) effects of B PA on exposed animals; and 6) links between BPA and cancer.
Journal ArticleDOI
Microplastics as an emerging threat to terrestrial ecosystems
Anderson Abel de Souza Machado,Anderson Abel de Souza Machado,Werner Kloas,Werner Kloas,Christiane Zarfl,Stefan Hempel,Matthias C. Rillig +6 more
TL;DR: The pervasive microplastic contamination as a potential agent of global change in terrestrial systems is introduced, the physical and chemical nature of the respective observed effects are highlighted, and the broad toxicity of nanoplastics derived from plastic breakdown is discussed.
References
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
Cloning of a novel receptor expressed in rat prostate and ovary.
TL;DR: It is concluded that clone 29 cDNA encodes a novel rat ER, which is suggested be named rat ERbeta to distinguish it from the previously cloned ER (ERalpha) from rat uterus.
Journal ArticleDOI
Evidence for decreasing quality of semen during past 50 years.
TL;DR: There has been a genuine decline in semen quality over the past 50 years, and as male fertility is to some extent correlated with sperm count the results may reflect an overall reduction in male fertility.
Journal ArticleDOI
Are oestrogens involved in falling sperm counts and disorders of the male reproductive tract
TL;DR: It is argued that the increasing incidence of reproductive abnormalities in the human male may be related to increased oestrogen exposure in utero, and mechanisms by which this exposure could occur are identified.
Journal ArticleDOI
The E-SCREEN assay as a tool to identify estrogens: an update on estrogenic environmental pollutants.
Ana M. Soto,Carlos Sonnenschein,Kerrie L. Chung,Mariana F. Fernández,Nicolás Olea,Fátima Olea Serrano +5 more
TL;DR: The aims of the work summarized in this paper were to validate the E-SCREEN assay, to screen a variety of chemicals present in the environment to identify those that may be causing reproductive effects in wildlife and humans, and to assess whether environmental estrogens may act cumulatively.
Journal ArticleDOI
Estrogenic Effects of Effluents from Sewage Treatment Works
TL;DR: The presence of vitellogenin in the plasma is indicative of estrogenic stimulation of the liver in oviparous fish, and rose rapidly and very markedly when trout were maintained in the effluent.