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. 2019 May:172:194-201.
doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2019.02.017. Epub 2019 Feb 13.

Prenatal exposure to an environmentally relevant phthalate mixture disrupts testicular steroidogenesis in adult male mice

Radwa Barakat  1 , Talia Seymore  2 , Po-Ching Patrick Lin  3 , Chan Jin Park  3 , CheMyong Jay Ko  4
Affiliations

Prenatal exposure to an environmentally relevant phthalate mixture disrupts testicular steroidogenesis in adult male mice

Radwa Barakat et al. Environ Res. 2019 May.

Abstract

Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in the environment are considered to be a contributing factor to the decline in the sperm quality. With growing evidence of the harmful effects of EDCs on the male reproductive system, we tested the hypothesis that prenatal exposure to an environmentally relevant phthalate mixture adversely affects reproductive outcomes and androgen synthesis. In this study, an environmentally relevant composition of phthalates (15% DiNP, 21% DEHP, 36% DEP, 15% DBP, 8% DiBP, and 5% BBzP) that were detected in urine samples of pregnant women in Illinois, United States, was used. Pregnant CD-1 mice (F0) were orally dosed with a vehicle or the phthalate mixtures (20 µg/kg/day, 200 µg/kg/day, 200 mg/kg/day, or 500 mg/kg/day) from gestational day 10.5 to the day of birth. Then, the indices of the reproductive function of the F1 males born to these dams were assessed. Those male mice prenatally exposed to the phthalate mixture had smaller gonads, prostates and seminal vesicles, especially in the 20 µg/kg/day and 500 mg/kg/day phthalate mixture groups, compared to the controls. Importantly, at the age of 12 months, those prenatally exposed mice had significantly lower serum testosterone concentrations accompanied by the decreased mRNA expression of testicular steroidogenic genes (StAR, Cyp11, and Cyp17) and impaired spermatogenesis. Taken together, this study found that prenatal exposure to environmentally relevant doses of a phthalate mixture caused a life-long impact on the reproduction in male mice.

Keywords: Endocrine disruptor; Fertility; Phthalates; Steroidogenesis; Testes.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest here.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Effects prenatal exposure to phthalate mixture on the weights of gonads, prostate and seminal vesicles.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Effects of prenatal exposure to phthalate mixture on fertility outcomes at 4 months of age.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Effects of prenatal exposure to phthalate mixture on serum testosterone levels.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Prenatal exposure to phthalate mixture effects on the expression of steroidogenic genes.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Prenatal exposure to phthalate mixture effects on the testis.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.
Prenatal exposure to phthalate mixture effects on the epididymis.
Figure 7.
Figure 7.
Prenatal exposure to phthalate mixture effects on epididymal sperm quality.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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