Gestational and lactational exposure of rats to xenoestrogens results in reduced testicular size and sperm production

EHP is a publication of the U.S. government. Publication of EHP lies in the public domain and is therefore without copyright. Research articles from EHP may be used freely; however, articles from the News section of EHP may contain photographs or figures copyrighted by other commercial organizations and individuals that may not be used without obtaining prior approval from both the EHP editors and the holder of the copyright. Use of any materials published in EHP should be acknowledged (for example, "Reproduced with permission from Environmental Health Perspectives") and a reference provided for the article from which the material was reproduced.This study assessed whether exposure of male rats to two estrogenic, environmental chemicals, 4-octylphenol (OP) and butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP) during gestation or during the first 21 days of postnatal life, affected testicular size or spermatogenesis in adulthood (90-95 days of age). Chemicals were administered via the drinking water or concentrations of 10-1000 micrograms/l (OP) or 1000 micrograms/l (BBP), diethylstilbestrol (DES; 100 micrograms/l) and an octylphenol polyethoxylate (OPP; 1000 micrograms/l), which is a weak estrogen or nonestrogenic in vitro, were administered as presumptive positive and negative controls, respectively. Controls received the vehicle (ethanol) in tap water. In study 1, rats were treated from days 1-22 after births in studies 2 and 3, the mothers were treated for approximately 8-9 weeks, spanning a 2-week period before mating throughout gestation and 22 days after giving birth. With the exception of DES, treatment generally had no major adverse effect or body weight: in most instances, treated animals were heavier than controls at day 22 and at days 90-95. Exposure to OP, OPP, or BBP at a concentration of 1000 micrograms/1 resulted in a small (5-13%) but significant (p < 0.01 or p < 0.0001) reduction in mean testicular size in studies 2 and 3, an effect that was still evident when testicular weight was expressed relative to body, weight or kidney weight. The effect of OPP is attributed to its metabolism in vivo to OP. DES exposure caused similar reductions in testicular size but also caused reductions in body weight, kidney weight, and litter size. Ventral prostate weight was reduced significantly in DES-treated rats and to minor extent in OP-treated rats. Comparable but more minor effects of treatment with DES or OP on testicular size were observed in study 1. None of the treatments had any adverse effect on testicular morphology or on the cross-sectional area of the lumen or seminiferous epithelium at stages VII-VIII of the spermatogenic cycle, but DES, OP, and BBP caused reductions of 10-21% (p < 0.05 to p < 0.001) in daily sperm production. Humans are exposed to phthalates, such as BBP, and to alkylphenol polyethoxylates, such as OP, but to what extent is unknown. More detailed studies are warranted to assess the possible risk to the development of the human testis from exposure to these and other environmental estrogens

Automated Global Feature Analyzer - A Driver for Tier-Scalable Reconnaissance

For the purposes of space flight, reconnaissance field geologists have trained to become astronauts. However, the initial forays to Mars and other planetary bodies have been done by purely robotic craft. Therefore, training and equipping a robotic craft with the sensory and cognitive capabilities of a field geologist to form a science craft is a necessary prerequisite. Numerous steps are necessary in order for a science craft to be able to map, analyze, and characterize a geologic field site, as well as effectively formulate working hypotheses. We report on the continued development of the integrated software system AGFA: automated global feature analyzerreg, originated by Fink at Caltech and his collaborators in 2001. AGFA is an automatic and feature-driven target characterization system that operates in an imaged operational area, such as a geologic field site on a remote planetary surface. AGFA performs automated target identification and detection through segmentation, providing for feature extraction, classification, and prioritization within mapped or imaged operational areas at different length scales and resolutions, depending on the vantage point (e.g., spaceborne, airborne, or ground). AGFA extracts features such as target size, color, albedo, vesicularity, and angularity. Based on the extracted features, AGFA summarizes the mapped operational area numerically and flags targets of "interest", i.e., targets that exhibit sufficient anomaly within the feature space. AGFA enables automated science analysis aboard robotic spacecraft, and, embedded in tier-scalable reconnaissance mission architectures, is a driver of future intelligent and autonomous robotic planetary exploration

A variety of environmentally persistent chemicals, including some phthalate plasticizers, are weakly estrogenic

Sewage, a complex mixture of organic and inorganic chemicals, is considered to be a major source of environmental pollution. A random screen of 20 organic man-made chemicals present in liquid effluents revealed that half appeared able to interact with the estradiol receptor. This was demonstrated by their ability to inhibit binding of 17 beta-estradiol to the fish estrogen receptor. Further studies, using mammalian estrogen screens in vitro, revealed that the two phthalate esters butylbenzyl phthalate (BBP) and di-n-butylphthalate (DBP) and a food antioxidant, butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) were estrogenic; however, they were all less estrogenic than the environmental estrogen octylphenol. Phthalate esters, used in the production of various plastics (including PVC), are among the most common industrial chemicals. Their ubiquity in the environment and tendency to bioconcentrate in animal fat are well known. Neither BBP nor DBP were able to act as antagonists, indicating that, in the presence of endogenous estrogens, their overall effect would be cumulative. Recently, it has been suggested that environmental estrogens may be etiological agents in several human diseases, including disorders of the male reproductive tract and breast and testicular cancers. The current finding that some phthalate compounds and some food additives are weakly estrogenic in vitro, needs to be supported by further studies on their effects in vivo before any conclusions can be made regarding their possible role in the development of these condition

Fate and occurrence of alkylphenolic compounds in sewage sludges determined by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry

This is the author's accepted manuscript. The final published article is available from the link below. Copyright @ 2009 Taylor & Francis.An analytical method has been developed and applied to determine the concentrations of the nonionic alkylphenol polyethoxylate surfactants and their metabolites, alkylphenoxy carboxylates and alkyphenols, in sewage sludges. The compounds were extracted with methanol/acetone (1:1 v/v) from sludge, and concentrated extracts were cleaned by silica solid‐phase extraction prior to determination by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. The recoveries, determined by spiking sewage sludge at two concentrations, ranged from 51% to 89% with method detection limits from 6 µg kg−1 to 60 µg kg−1. The methodology was subsequently applied to sludge samples obtained from a carbonaceous activated sludge plant, a nitrifying/denitrifying activated sludge plant and a nitrifying/denitrifying activated sludge plant with phosphorus removal. Concentrations of nonylphenolic compounds were two to three times higher than their octyl analogues. Long‐chain nonylphenol polyethoxylates (NP3–12EO) ranged from 16 µg kg−1 to 11754 µg kg−1. The estrogenic metabolite nonylphenol was present at concentrations ranging from 33 µg kg−1 to 6696 µg kg−1.Public Utilities Board of Singapore, Thames Water and Yorkshire Water

The estrogenic activity of phthalate esters in vitro

A large number of phthalate esters were screened for estrogenic activity using a recombinant yeast screen. a selection of these was also tested for mitogenic effect on estrogen-responsive human breast cancer cells. A small number of the commercially available phthalates tested showed extremely weak estrogenic activity. The relative potencies of these descended in the order butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP) > dibutyl phthalate (DBP) > diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP) > diethyl phthalate (DEP) > diisiononyl phthalate (DINP). Potencies ranged from approximately 1 x 10(6) to 5 x 10(7) times less than 17beta-estradiol. The phthalates that were estrogenic in the yeast screen were also mitogenic on the human breast cancer cells. Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) showed no estrogenic activity in these in vitro assays. A number of metabolites were tested, including mono-butyl phthalate, mono-benzyl phthalate, mono-ethylhexyl phthalate, mon-n-octyl phthalate; all were wound to be inactive. One of the phthalates, ditridecyl phthalate (DTDP), produced inconsistent results; one sample was weakly estrogenic, whereas another, obtained from a different source, was inactive. analysis by gel chromatography-mass spectometry showed that the preparation exhibiting estrogenic activity contained 0.5% of the ortho-isomer of bisphenol A. It is likely that the presence of this antioxidant in the phthalate standard was responsible for the generation of a dose-response curve--which was not observed with an alternative sample that had not been supplemented with o,p'-bisphenol A--in the yeast screen; hence, DTDP is probably not weakly estrogenic. The activities of simple mixtures of BBP, DBP, and 17beta-estradiol were assessed in the yeast screen. No synergism was observed, although the activities of the mixtures were approximately additive. In summary, a small number of phthalates are weakly estrogenic in vitro. No data has yet been published on whether these are also estrogenic in vitro. No data has yet been published on whether these are also estrogenic in vivo; this will require tests using different classes of vertebrates and different routes of exposure

Resting vs. active: a meta-analysis of the intra- and inter-specific associations between minimum, sustained, and maximum metabolic rates in vertebrates

Variation in aerobic capacity has far reaching consequences for the physiology, ecology, and evolution of vertebrates. Whether at rest or active, animals are constrained to operate within the energetic bounds determined by their minimum (minMR) and sustained or maximum metabolic rates (upperMR). MinMR and upperMR can differ considerably among individuals and species but are often presumed to be mechanistically linked to one another. Specifically, minMR is thought to reflect the idling cost of the machinery needed to support upperMR. However, previous analyses based on limited datasets have come to conflicting conclusions regarding the generality and strength of their association. Here we conduct the first comprehensive assessment of their relationship, based on a large number of published estimates of both the intra-specific (n = 176) and inter-specific (n = 41) phenotypic correlations between minMR and upperMR, estimated as either exercise-induced maximum metabolic rate (VO2max), cold-induced summit metabolic rate (Msum), or daily energy expenditure (DEE). Our meta-analysis shows that there is a general positive association between minMR and upperMR that is shared among vertebrate taxonomic classes. However, there was stronger evidence for intra-specific correlations between minMR and Msum and between minMR and DEE than there was for a correlation between minMR and VO2max across different taxa. As expected, inter-specific correlation estimates were consistently higher than intra-specific estimates across all traits and vertebrate classes. An interesting exception to this general trend was observed in mammals, which contrast with birds and exhibit no correlation between minMR and Msum. We speculate that this is due to the evolution and recruitment of brown fat as a thermogenic tissue, which illustrates how some species and lineages might circumvent this seemingly general association. We conclude that, in spite of some variability across taxa and traits, the contention that minMR and upperMR are positively correlated generally holds true both within and across vertebrate species. Ecological and comparative studies should therefore take into consideration the possibility that variation in any one of these traits might partly reflect correlated responses to selection on other metabolic parameters

Improvement of Bioenergetics Model Predictions for Fish Undergoing Compensatory Growth

A previous evaluation of a bioenergetics model applied to juvenile hybrid sunfish (F1 hybrid of female green sunfish Lepomis cyanellus × male bluegill L. macrochirus) undergoing compensatory growth (CG) indicated that the model substantially overestimated growth and underestimated cumulative consumption. This result suggested that fish bioenergetics models might not adequately account for physiological shifts that occur during CG. However, we demonstrate that application of a recently developed procedure for correcting consumption- and growth-rate-dependent systematic errors common among bioenergetics models negates much of the predictive error that had been attributed to the physiological complexities of CG. Correction equations for estimating the model-relative growth rate error (predicted less observed; g · g−1 · d−1) from the observed mean daily consumption rate (g · g−1 · d−1) and the consumption rate error (predicted less observed; g · g−1 · d−1) from the observed relative growth rate (g · g−1 · d−1) were derived by applying linear regression analysis to data from individual hybrid sunfish not undergoing CG. These independently generated correction equations significantly improved model predictions of growth and cumulative consumption for three groups of fish undergoing CG at one temperature near their growth optimum. The findings indicate that the high consumption and growth rates characteristic of fish undergoing CG merely amplify the consumption- and growth-rate-dependent errors inherent in bioenergetics models and that model predictions for fish undergoing CG can be significantly improved through application of the correction procedure

Removal of ecotoxicity of 17α-ethinylestradiol using TAML/peroxide water treatment

17α -ethinylestradiol (EE2), a synthetic oestrogen in oral contraceptives, is one of many pharmaceuticals found in inland waterways worldwide as a result of human consumption and excretion into wastewater treatment systems. At low parts per trillion (ppt), EE2 induces feminisation of male fish, diminishing reproductive success and causing fish population collapse. Intended water quality standards for EE2 set a much needed global precedent. Ozone and activated carbon provide effective wastewater treatments, but their energy intensities and capital/operating costs are formidable barriers to adoption. Here we describe the technical and environmental performance of a fast- developing contender for mitigation of EE2 contamination of wastewater based upon smallmolecule, full-functional peroxidase enzyme replicas called “TAML activators”. From neutral to basic pH, TAML activators with H2O2 efficiently degrade EE2 in pure lab water, municipal effluents and EE2-spiked synthetic urine. TAML/H2O2 treatment curtails estrogenicity in vitro and substantially diminishes fish feminization in vivo. Our results provide a starting point for a future process in which tens of thousands of tonnes of wastewater could be treated per kilogram of catalyst. We suggest TAML/H2O2 is a worthy candidate for exploration as an environmentally compatible, versatile, method for removing EE2 and other pharmaceuticals from municipal wastewaters.Heinz Endowments, the Swiss National Science Foundation, the Steinbrenner Institute for a Steinbrenner Doctoral Fellowship. NMR instrumentation at CMU was partially supported by NSF (CHE-0130903 and CHE-1039870)

Influence of operating parameters on the biodegradation of steroid estrogens and nonylphenolic compounds during biological wastewater treatment processes

This document is the unedited author's version of a Submitted Work that was subsequently accepted for publication in Environmental Science & Technology, copyright © American Chemical Society after peer review. To access the final edited and published work see http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/es901612v.This study investigated operational factors influencing the removal of steroid estrogens and nonylphenolic compounds in two sewage treatment works, one a nitrifying/denitrifying activated sludge plant and the other a nitrifying/denitrifying activated sludge plant with phosphorus removal. Removal efficiencies of >90% for steroid estrogens and for longer chain nonylphenol ethoxylates (NP4−12EO) were observed at both works, which had equal sludge ages of 13 days. However, the biological activity in terms of milligrams of estrogen removed per day per tonne of biomass was found to be 50−60% more efficient in the nitrifying/denitrifying activated sludge works compared to the works which additionally incorporated phosphorus removal. A temperature reduction of 6 °C had no impact on the removal of free estrogens, but removal of the conjugated estrone-3-sulfate was reduced by 20%. The apparent biomass sorption (LogKp) values were greater in the nitrifying/denitrifying works than those in the nitrifying/denitrifying works with phosphorus removal for both steroid estrogens and nonylphenolic compounds possibly indicating a different cell surface structure and therefore microbial population. The difference in biological activity (mg tonne−1 d−1) identified in this study, of up to seven times, suggests that there is the potential for enhancing the removal of estrogens and nonylphenols if more detailed knowledge of the factors responsible for these differences can be identified and maximized, thus potentially improving the quality of receiving waters.Public Utilities Board (Singapore), Anglian Water Ltd, Severn Trent Water Ltd, Thames Water Utilities Ltd, United Utilities 393 Plc and Yorkshire Water Services

The history of the Y chromosome in man

Studies of the Y chromosome over the past few decades have opened a window into the history of our species, through the reconstruction and exploitation of a patrilineal (Y-genealogical) tree based on several hundred single-nucleotide variants (SNVs). A new study validates, refines and extends this tree by incorporating >65,000 Y-linked variants identified in 1,244 men representing worldwide diversity