Human exposure to a mixture of endocrine disruptors and serum levels of thyroid hormones: A cross-sectional study

Exposure to endocrine disruptors (EDCs) could disrupt thyroid hormone homeostasis. However, human epidemiological studies reported inconsistent observations, and scarce information on the effect of a mixture of chemicals. The aim of the present study was to examine the associations of multiple chemicals with thyroid hormones among adults from China. We measured serum levels of thyroid hormones and urinary levels of 11 EDCs, including six phthalate metabolites, bisphenol A (BPA), bisphenol F (BPF), bisphenol S (BPS), perchlorate, and thiocyanate among 177 healthy adults without occupational exposure. Associations of multiple urinary analytes with serum thyroid hormones were examined by performing general linear regression analysis and bayesian kernal machine regression analysis. These EDCs were detected in almost all samples. After adjusting for various covariates, we observed only BPF significantly associated with total thyroxin (TT4) (β=-0.27, 95% confidence interval (CI) [-0.41, -0.14]), total triiodothyronine (TT3) (β=-0.02 95% CI [-0.03, -0.01]), free T4 (fT4) (β=-0.02, 95% CI [-0.03, -0.01]), and free T3 (fT3) (β=-0.04, 95% CI [-0.07, -0.01]), and mono-(2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate (MEOHP) and monoethyl phthalate (MEP) positively associated with TT4 (β=0.24, 95% CI [0.01, 0.48]) and fT4 (β=0.02, 95% CI [0.01, 0.04]), respectively. Moreover, we observed significant dose-response relationships between TT4 and the mixture of 11 EDCs, and BPF was the main contributor to the mixture effect, suggesting the priority of potential effect of BPF on disrupting thyroid function under a real scenario of human exposure to multiple EDCs. Our findings supported the hypothesis that human exposure to low levels of EDCs could alter thyroid hormones homeostasis among non-occupational healthy adults.     

东北三省畜禽养殖类固醇激素排放及其潜在污染风险

以东北三省畜禽养殖数量统计数据和养殖结构分析为基础,对黑龙江、吉林和辽宁省畜禽养殖类固醇激素排放量进行了估算,并初步探讨了畜禽粪便中类固醇激素对当地水体的潜在污染风险.结果表明,由于养殖数量的增加,东北三省畜禽粪便所排放的类固醇激素量均持续增大.在1998～2008年的10 a间,辽宁、吉林和黑龙江三省的类固醇激素排放量分别增长了2 272.7、1 951.1和1 634.8 kg,并且省会城市沈阳、长春和哈尔滨的增长最为明显.东北三省各城市中畜禽粪便类固醇雌激素排放量最大的是长春,达到874.7 kg;哈尔滨和沈阳的排放量在各自省份中也是最大,分别为652.7 kg和603.1 kg·辽宁省的畜禽类固醇激素排放总量在东北三省为最多,所排放类固醇雌激素的雌二醇等当量浓度EEQs预测值也最高,达到17.1ng·L-1.如果以英国环保署(Environment Agency,United Kingdom)建议的最低可观测效应浓度10 ng·L-1为参考依据,辽宁省在目前的畜禽养殖规模和结构下,所排放的粪便类固醇雌激素极有可能会对地表水体中的水生生物产生内分泌干扰效应.     

Spawning behaviour and sex hormone levels in adult and precocious brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) males and the effect of anosmia

Summary. In the present experiment the behaviour and endocrine status of males of the brown trout, Salmo trutta L., (Salmoniformes: Salmonidae) were studied when males were kept in a stream tank with a nest digging female. Groups of mature adult males and precocious intact or anosmic male parr were placed with the nesting female so that the group resembled a natural spawning situation with big anadromous fish acting as dominant males and precocious parr acting as “sneakers”. A control experiment was also run with only males without a female present. In intact parr there were significant positive correlations between the per cent of the total observation time spent with a female, milt volume, and plasma concentration of 17α, 20β-dihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one. Anosmic parr had significantly lower volumes of strippable milt and gonadal steroid hormone levels compared with intact parr. However, no differences were found in the control experiment. Significantly fewer anosmic parr attended and courted the nesting female and those anosmic fish that attended the female had significantly lower plasma levels of gonadal hormones. Intact parr also displayed a greater number of agonistic acts against other parr without any difference in fighting ability. No differences in aggression occured in the control experiment. In adult males together with a female, post-experimental gonadal steroid hormone levels were higher than pre-experimental levels. Positive correlations between aggression and androgen hormone levels were observed in adult males. No differences in plasma hormone levels were observed between adult males and intact precocious males. The results show that olfactory occlusion results in low steroid hormone levels and milt volumes in precocious males placed in a spawning situation. The courting behaviour was also affected by anosmia. Odours from the nesting female may have caused the enhanced plasma hormone levels and stimulated the males to attend the female. Received 15 May 1997; accepted 29 June 1997.     

类固醇雌激素分析方法研究进展

类固醇雌激素因其对野生动物、人类健康及生态环境安全造成危害而受到全世界的普遍关注,并成为环境科学和生态毒理学研究的重点和热点之一.针对4种典型的类固醇雌激素(雌激素酮、17-β-雌二醇、雌三醇和17-α-乙炔基雌二醇),对其羟基和酮基衍生化技术、水和固体样品的前处理技术及仪器检测方法进行了综述,总结了类固醇雌激素分析方法的研究动态和进展.     

Excretion of manure-borne estrogens and androgens and their potential risk estimation in the Yangtze River Basin

The Yangtze River is the longest river in China, and the river basin spans one fifth of the area of the whole country. Based on statistical data, the excretion of manure-borne steroid hormones, including steroid estrogens(SEs) and steroid androgens(SAs), in 10 provinces of China within the region has been estimated. The potential environmental and ecological risk of manure-borne steroid estrogens to the surface water in this region was also assessed. The manure-borne SE and SA excretions in the 10 provinces and municipalities vary in the order: Sichuan Hunan Hubei Yunnan Jiangsu Anhui Jiangxi Chongqing Qinghai Shanghai. The highest increase of manure-borne SEs(1434.3 kg)and SAs(408.5 kg) was found in Hunan and Hubei provinces, respectively, and the total excretion in 2013 was 65% more than 15 years earlier in these two provinces. However, the emissions in Anhui and Shanghai decreased in this 15 year period of time. Swine urine,chicken feces, cattle urine, and laying hen feces were considered the dominant sources of manure-borne E1, βE2, αE2, and SAs, respectively. Although Jiangsu province did not have the largest excretion of manure-borne SEs, it had the highest level of predicted17β-estradiol equivalency(EEQs) value of 16.65 ng/L in surface water because of the limited surface water resources. According to the lowest observable effect level of 10 ng/L for17β-estradiol, the manure-borne SEs in Jiangsu province might potentially pose ecological risk to its wild aquatic organisms.     

Ectoparasites of house sparrows (Passer domesticus): an experimental test of the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis and a new model

Conspicuous secondary sexual traits may have evolved as handicap-revealing signals or as badges of status. We present results of an experiment using males of the sexually dimorphic house sparrow (Passer domesticus), that support the idea that the male-specific bib can be both a handicap-revealing signal and a reliable badge indicating the physical condition of the bird. In a test of the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis, wild-caught adult male house sparrows were studied in captivity. Birds implanted with elevated doses of testosterone were more dominant, had higher circulating levels of both testosterone and corticosterone and they also harboured relatively larger ectoparasite loads. Higher parasite loads were also associated with individuals showing lower immunocompetence and larger changes in bib size. A new model for immunocompetence effects in sexual selection is introduced, integrating actions that the hypothalamopituitary axis exerts on gonads, adrenals and the thyroid gland. The ”integrated immunocompetence model” synthesizes both the ”handicap” (i.e. survival-decreasing) and ”badge of status” (i.e. survival- enhancing) models for evolution of secondary sexual traits. Received: 15 May 1999 / Received in revised form: 2 November 1999 / Accepted: 6 November 1999     

Modulation of steroidogenesis by coastal waters and sewage effluents of Hong Kong, China, using the H295R assay

BACKGROUND, AIM, AND SCOPE: The presence of a variety of pollutants in the aquatic environment that can potentially interfere with the production of sex steroid hormones in wildlife and humans has been of increasing concern. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of extracts from Hong Kong marine waters, and influents and effluents from wastewater treatment plants on steroidogenesis using the H295R cell bioassay. After exposing H295R cells to extracts of water, the expression of four steroidogenic genes and the production of three steroid hormones were measured. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Water samples were collected during the summer of 2005 from 24 coastal marine areas and from the influents and effluents of two major waste water treatment plants (WWTPs) in Hong Kong, China. Samples were extracted by solid phase extraction (SPE). H295R cells were exposed for 48 h to dilutions of these extracts. Modulations of the expression of the steroidogenic genes CYP19, CYP17, 3betaHSD2, and CYP11beta2 were determined by measuring mRNA concentrations by real-time polymerase chain reaction (Q-RT-PCR). Production of the hormones progesterone (P), estradiol (E2), and testosterone (T) was quantified using enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). RESULTS: Extracts from samples collected in two fish culture areas inhibited growth and proliferation of H295R cells at concentrations greater or equal to 10(5) L equivalents. The cells were exposed to the equivalent concentration of active substances in 10,000 L of water. Thus, to observe the same level of effect as observed in vitro on aquatic organisms would require a bioaccumulation factor of this same magnitude. None of the other 22 marine samples affected growth of the cells at any dilution tested. Twelve of the marine water samples completely inhibited the expression of CYP19 without affecting E2 production; inhibition of CYP17 expression was observed only in one of the samples while expression of CYP11beta2 was induced as much as five- and ninefold after exposure of cells to extracts from two locations. The expression of the progesterone gene 3betaHSD2 was not affected by any of the samples; only one sample induced approximately fourfold the production of E2. Although more than twofold inductions were observed for P and T production, none of these values were statistically significant to conclude effects on the production of these two hormones. While influents from WWTPs did not affect gene expression, an approximately 30% inhibition in the production of E2 and a 40% increase in P occurred for the exposure with influents from the Sha Tin and Stonecutters WWTPs, respectively. Effluents from WWTPs did not affect the production of any of the studied hormones, but a decrement in the expression of the aldosterone gene CYP11beta2 was observed for the Sha Tin WWTP exposure. No direct correlation could be established between gene expression and hormone production. DISCUSSION: Observed cytotoxicity in the two samples from fish culture areas suggest the presence of toxic compounds; chemical analysis is required for their full identification. Although effluents from WWTPs did not affect hormone production, other types of endocrine activity such as receptor-mediated effects cannot be ruled out. Interactions due to the complexity of the samples and alternative steroidogenic pathways might explain the lack of correlation between gene expression and hormone production results. CONCLUSIONS: Changes observed in gene expression and hormone production suggest the presence in Hong Kong coastal waters of pollutants with endocrine disruption potential and others of significant toxic effects. The aromatase and aldosterone genes seem to be the most affected by the exposures, while E2 and P are the hormones with more significant changes observed. Results also suggest effectiveness in the removing of compounds with endocrine activity by the WWTPs studied, as effluent samples did not significantly affect hormone production. The H295R cell showed to be a valuable toll in the battery required for the analysis of endocrine disrupting activities of complex environmental samples. RECOMMENDATIONS AND PERSPECTIVES: Due to the intrinsic complexity of environmental samples, a combination of analytical tools is required to realistically assess environmental conditions, especially in aquatic systems. In the evaluation of endocrine disrupting activities, the H295R cell bioassay should be used in combination with other genomic, biological, chemical, and hydrological tests to establish viable modes for endocrine disruption and identify compounds responsible for the observed effects.     

Determination of Steroid Estrogens in Wastewater Treatment Plant of A Controceptives Producing Factory

Steroid estrogens such as estrone (E1), 17β-estradiol (E2), estriol (E3), and 17α-ethynylestradiol (EE2) have been suspected to be the main contaminants, which can affect the endocrine system of animals. Many authors have investigated these chemicals in the domestic wastewater treatment plants (WTP). However, wastewater from industries producing steroid contraceptives has not got ample attention. From the environmental point of view, the four steroids are very significant because even very low concentrations (ng/L) can cause reproductive disturbances in human, livestock and wildlife. The main purpose of the present investigation was to develop an analytical method for the determination of the four steroid estrogens present in WTP of a pharmacy factory, mainly producing contraceptive medicine in Beijing, China. Analysis was performed by solid-phase extraction (SPE) system and liquid chromatography combined with tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). The average recoveries from effluent samples ranged from 88% to 103% and the precision of the method ranged from 9% to 4%. Based on 0.5-L wastewater samples, the limit of quantification (LOQ) was determined at 0.7 ng/L for E1, 0.8 for E2, 0.9 ng/L for E3, and 0.5 ng/L for EE2 in influent, and 1.0 ng/L for E2 and EE2, and 2.0 ng/L for E1 and E3 in effluent. In the influent samples, average concentrations of 80, 85, 73 and 155 ng/L were determined for E1, E2, E3 and EE2, respectively, showing that they were removed in this WTP to the extent of 79, 73, 85 and 67%, respectively.