TY - JOUR

T1 - Endocrine disrupting compounds

T2 - effect of octylphenol on reproduction over three generations

AU - Bøgh, I B

AU - Christensen, P

AU - Dantzer, V

AU - Groot, M

AU - Thøfner, Ida

AU - Rasmussen, R K

AU - Schmidt, M

AU - Greve, T

PY - 2001

Y1 - 2001

N2 - With the growing concern that environmental chemicals might impair human and animal fertility, it is important to investigate the possible influence of these substances on sexual differentiation and genital development of mammals. Many of these substances are suspected to interfere with endocrine processes, and exposure during critical periods of prenatal development might affect reproductive performance over several generations. Alkylphenols and their metabolites are lipophilic substances exerting apparent estrogenic action in in vitro and in vivo testing systems. With the widespread industrial use of alkylphenols, these are disseminated in the environment with sewage sludge, and domestic animals and humans are likely to be exposed via the food chain. Using the pig as an in vivo model, we studied the effect of intrauterine exposure to tertiary octylphenol (OP) on essential reproductive parameters over 3 generations. Sows were treated daily from D 23 to 85 of pregnancy with either 0, 10 or 1000 micrograms OP/kg body weight. Treatment with OP extended pregnancy length and induced basal cell proliferation in the cervical epithelium of the parental generation. In F1 offspring of sows treated with the low dosage of OP, onset of puberty was accelerated. Furthermore, when F1 gilts and F1 boars originating from sows treated with high dosages of OP were bred, the litter size was reduced. The results of the present study are compared with previous reports on estrogenicity of OP, and the usefulness of in vivo animal or embryo models for the evaluation of possible consequences of human exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds is discussed. Furthermore, possible consequences of exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds for the embryo transfer industry are addressed.

AB - With the growing concern that environmental chemicals might impair human and animal fertility, it is important to investigate the possible influence of these substances on sexual differentiation and genital development of mammals. Many of these substances are suspected to interfere with endocrine processes, and exposure during critical periods of prenatal development might affect reproductive performance over several generations. Alkylphenols and their metabolites are lipophilic substances exerting apparent estrogenic action in in vitro and in vivo testing systems. With the widespread industrial use of alkylphenols, these are disseminated in the environment with sewage sludge, and domestic animals and humans are likely to be exposed via the food chain. Using the pig as an in vivo model, we studied the effect of intrauterine exposure to tertiary octylphenol (OP) on essential reproductive parameters over 3 generations. Sows were treated daily from D 23 to 85 of pregnancy with either 0, 10 or 1000 micrograms OP/kg body weight. Treatment with OP extended pregnancy length and induced basal cell proliferation in the cervical epithelium of the parental generation. In F1 offspring of sows treated with the low dosage of OP, onset of puberty was accelerated. Furthermore, when F1 gilts and F1 boars originating from sows treated with high dosages of OP were bred, the litter size was reduced. The results of the present study are compared with previous reports on estrogenicity of OP, and the usefulness of in vivo animal or embryo models for the evaluation of possible consequences of human exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds is discussed. Furthermore, possible consequences of exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds for the embryo transfer industry are addressed.

KW - Animals

KW - Biopsy

KW - Cervix Uteri

KW - Diethylstilbestrol

KW - Environmental Pollutants

KW - Female

KW - Fetal Death

KW - Litter Size

KW - Male

KW - Phenols

KW - Pregnancy

KW - Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects

KW - Reproduction

KW - Sex Ratio

KW - Sexual Maturation

KW - Swine

KW - Time Factors

U2 - 10.1016/S0093-691X(00)00451-9

DO - 10.1016/S0093-691X(00)00451-9

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 11198078

VL - 55

SP - 131

EP - 150

JO - Theriogenology

JF - Theriogenology

SN - 0093-691X

IS - 1

ER -