Aryl hydrocarbon receptor, endocrine

Monitoring of Endocrine Disrupters in Transgenic Plants Carrying Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor and Estrogen Receptor Genes... 

The effect of these compounds on human health has been a major cause of concern. Toxicity to humans depends on exact structure, but exposure is ubiquitous and involves a mixture of compounds, from fossil fuel and natural and anthropogenic burning and from food, mainly grilled or barbecued meat. In the broader environment, PAHs are endocrine disruptors and bind to the aryl hydrocarbon receptor. They have been shown to depress immune function in some wildlife. They may be responsible for reproductive disorders in aquatic organisms, especially in shellfish and sediment dwellers. 

AHR aryl hydrocarbon (Ah) receptor EDC endocrine disrupting chemical... 

Dioxin, PCB, DDT, and the like, i.e., chlorinated aromatic hydrocarbons are believed to bind to a special receptor called AH receptor (AH stands for aryl hydrocarbon). The AH receptor bound with dioxin (or PCB) enters into the nucleus of the cell, and binds to a specific site of a DNA. One of the effects caused by such a binding seems to be an induction of an enzyme dependent on cytochrome P-450. Cytochrome P-450-dependent monooxygenase was talked about in Sect. 6.2.2, and is involved in the metabolism of a wide variety of compounds including steroids and foreign substances (drugs). Probably the P-450 enzymes induced by dioxin, PCB, and others would then metabolize steroid hormones unnecessarily, and thus disrupt the endocrine system. The details are still not very well understood. However, you see that the processes are all chemical reactions at the deepest level. 

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