Abstract | BACKGROUND:
Bisphenol A (BPA) is a synthetic estrogen commonly used in polycarbonate plastic and resin-lined food and beverage containers. Exposure of animal and cell models to doses of BPA below the recommended tolerable daily intake (TDI) of 50 μg/kg/day have been shown to alter specific estrogen-responsive gene expression, but this has not previously been shown in humans. OBJECTIVE: We investigated associations between BPA exposure and in vivo estrogenic gene expression in humans. METHODS: RESULTS: The geometric mean urinary BPA concentration was 3.65 ng/mL [95% confidence interval (CI): 3.13, 4.28], giving an estimated mean excretion of 5.84 μg/day (95% CI: 5.00, 6.85), significantly below the current TDI. In age-adjusted models, there were positive associations between higher BPA concentrations and higher ESR2 [ estrogen receptor 2 (ER beta)] expression (unstandardized linear regression coefficient = 0.1804; 95% CI: 0.0388, 0.3221; p = 0.013) and ESRRA ( estrogen related receptor alpha) expression (coefficient = 0.1718; 95% CI: 0.0213, 0.3223; p = 0.026): These associations were little changed after adjusting for potential confounders, including obesity, serum lipid concentrations, and white cell subtype percentages. Upper-tertile BPA excretors (urinary BPA > 4.6 ng/mL) had 65% higher mean ESR2 expression than did lower-tertile BPA excretors (0-2.4 ng/mL). CONCLUSIONS: Because activation of nuclear-receptor-mediated pathways by BPA is consistently found in laboratory studies, such activation in humans provides evidence that BPA is likely to function as a xenoestrogen in this sample of adults.
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Authors | David Melzer, Lorna Harries, Riccardo Cipelli, William Henley, Cathryn Money, Paul McCormack, Anita Young, Jack Guralnik, Luigi Ferrucci, Stefania Bandinelli, Anna Maria Corsi, Tamara Galloway |
Journal | Environmental health perspectives
(Environ Health Perspect)
Vol. 119
Issue 12
Pg. 1788-93
(Dec 2011)
ISSN: 1552-9924 [Electronic] United States |
PMID | 21831745
(Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
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Chemical References |
- Benzhydryl Compounds
- Endocrine Disruptors
- Phenols
- Receptors, Androgen
- Receptors, Estrogen
- bisphenol A
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Topics |
- Adult
- Benzhydryl Compounds
- Endocrine Disruptors
(toxicity, urine)
- Environmental Exposure
- Gene Expression Regulation
(drug effects)
- Humans
- Italy
- Leukocytes
(metabolism)
- Linear Models
- Phenols
(toxicity, urine)
- Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
- Receptors, Androgen
(metabolism)
- Receptors, Estrogen
(metabolism)
- Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
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