Environmental health perspectives

Endocrine-disrupting organochlorines, such as the pesticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), bind to and activate estrogen receptors (ERs), thereby eliciting estrogen-like effects. Although ERs function predominantly through activatio…

A potential connection exists between exposure to organochlorine chemicals and the increasing prevalence of endometriosis. Evidence shows that dioxin (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin) can increase the incidence and severity of the disea…

Hydrocarbons (HCs) found in fuels and solvents are ubiquitous in the environment, yet we know little about their effects on the endocrine system. The objective of this study was to assess the potential reproductive endocrine effects of low-…

Over the past several years there has been concern over exposure to dioxins through the use of tampons and other sanitary products. This article describes attempts to estimate dioxin exposures from tampons and infant diapers; we then compar…

2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-(italic)p(/italic)-dioxin (TCDD or dioxin), a widespread environmental contaminant, has been shown to disrupt multiple endocrine pathways. The International Agency for Research on Cancer classified TCDD as a known…

Dioxin, a ubiquitous contaminant of industrial combustion processes including medical waste incineration, has been implicated in the etiology of endometriosis in animals. We sought to determine whether dioxin exposure is associated with end…

Most research on the effects of chemicals on biologic systems is conducted on one chemical at a time. However, in the real world people are exposed to mixtures, not single chemicals. Although various substances may have totally independent …

The rates of mortality, morbidity as hospitalizations, and congenital anomalies in the Windsor Area of Concern ranked among the highest of the 17 Areas of Concern on the Canadian side of the Great Lakes for selected end points that might be…

There are six Areas of Concern, as identified by the International Joint Commission, located in New York State. Three are contiguous in western New York and have similar contaminants (Buffalo River, Niagara River, and 18 Mile Creek). We use…

The role of the physical environment as a determinant of health is a major concern reported by the general public as well as by many policymakers. However, it remains one of the health determinants for which few available measures or indica…

We examined human adipose tissue, liver, and bile from humans in Japan to understand the contamination status, specific accumulation, and elimination of two newly identified environmental contaminants, tris(4-chlorophenyl)methane (TCPMe), t…

The view of women as primarily fecund beings goes back to prehistory, where it is expressed in the well-known series of Venuses--stone figures of women with enlarged breasts, who are often represented as pregnant. Although the Venus figures…

We assessed exposure to dioxin-like compounds using chemical and bioassay analysis in different matrices in a female population. A total of 106 serum and 9 follicular fluid samples were collected from infertile women attending Centers for R…

We examined the influence of widely varied consumption of fatty fish from the Baltic Sea and of age on plasma concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polychlorobiphenylols (OH-PCBs), 2, 2-bis(4-chlorophenyl)-1,1,1-trichloroethan…

Fish sexual development is sensitive to exogenous hormone manipulation, and salmonids have been used extensively as environmental sentinels and models for biomedical research. We simulated maternal transfer of contaminants by microinjecting…

The workshop "Characterizing the Effects of Endocrine Disruptors on Human Health at Environmental Exposure Levels" was held to provide a forum for discussions and recommendations of methods and data needed to improve risk assessments of end…

This article addresses issues related to the characterization of endocrine-related health effects resulting from low-level exposures to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). It is not intended to be a comprehensive review of the literature but …