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Review
. 2020 Mar 18;21(6):2078.
doi: 10.3390/ijms21062078.

Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals and Their Effects during Female Puberty: A Review of Current Evidence

Laura Lucaccioni  1 , Viola Trevisani  2 , Lucia Marrozzini  2 , Natascia Bertoncelli  1 , Barbara Predieri  3 , Licia Lugli  1 , Alberto Berardi  1 , Lorenzo Iughetti  2   3
Affiliations
Review

Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals and Their Effects during Female Puberty: A Review of Current Evidence

Laura Lucaccioni et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Puberty is the process of physical changes between childhood and adulthood during which adolescents reach sexual maturity and become capable of reproduction. It is considered one of the main temporal windows of susceptibility for the influence of the endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). EDCs may act as single chemical agents or as chemical mixtures; they can be pubertal influencers, accelerating and anticipating the processing of maturation of secondary sexual characteristics. Moreover, recent studies have started to point out how exposure to EDCs during puberty may predispose to breast cancer later in life. In fact, the estrogen-mimicking endocrine disruptors (EEDs) may influence breast tissue development during puberty in two main ways: the first is the action on the proliferation of the breast stromal cells, the second concerns epigenetic mechanisms. The aim of this mini-review was to better highlight what is new and what is not completely known regarding the role of EDCs during puberty.

Keywords: Early Puberty; Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs); Estrogen-mimicking Endocrine Disruptors (EEDs); Window of susceptibility; breast cancer; breast development; puberty.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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