Endocrine disruption in humans

No studies were located regarding endocrine disruption in humans after exposure to endosulfan. 

Needham LL, Blount B, Rogers S, et al. 2000. Levels of selected nonpersistant endocrine disrupters in humans. In Analysis of environmental endocrine disrupters. American Chemical Society, Washington, DC, 147-157. 

No studies were located regarding endocrine disruption in humans after exposure to wood creosote, coal tar creosote, coal tar, coal tar pitch, or coal tar pitch volatiles. 

As outlined in Chapter 2, ECD are chemicals that can cause hormonal related diseases and dysfunctions that can be effective even at very low levels (at parts per trillion, levels at which most chemicals have never been tested). ECD became a significant focus of environmental science and medicine in recent years because of its critical importance in heath. A wide range of chemicals, both natural compounds (phytoestrogens) and some synthetic chemicals (including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), dioxins, certain preservatives and metal ions, even certain woods) are all suspected of being capable of endocrine disruption in humans. 

There is particular concern that the pharmacodynamic activities of some drugs may be expressed in consumers, and this concern has been paramount over the presence of hormonally active substances, and particularly those with the capacity to act as endocrine disrupters in humans or indeed, in environmental organisms. There is a considerable body of concerns that include adverse effects on sexual, thyroid, adrenal and reproductive function in humans and other animals, as well as genital abnormalities e.g. hypospadias) and effects on embryonic and foetal development. This has led to the tighter regulation of human pharmaceutical products in a number of countries from the point of view of environmental effects and environmental assess-... 

Touraud E, Roig B, Sumpter JP, Coetsier C (2011) Drug residues and endocrine disrupters in drinking water risk for humans Int J Hyg Environ Health 214 437-441... 

Fan W, Yanase T, Morinaga H et al (2007) Atrazine-induced aromatase expression is SF-1 dependent implications for endocrine disruption in wildlife and reproductive cancers in humans. Environ Health Perspect 115 720-727... 

A firm assessment of the risk to humans is not possible at present because of a lack of relevant data about the effects of exposure to endocrine disrupters. While high levels of exposure to some chemicals thought to have endocrine disrupting properties could theoretically increase the risk of reproductive and developmental disorders, no direct evidence is available at present. Further investigation of the relationship between potential endocrine disrupters and human health is needed. In particular, the levels of exposure of humans to such chemicals must be reliably established. 

Fan, W., T. Yanase, H. Morinaga, S. Gondo, T. Okabe, M. Nomura, T. Komatsu, K.-I. Morohashi, T.B. Hayes, R. Takayanagi, and H. Nawata (2007b). Atrazine-induced aromatase expression is SF-1 dependent implications for endocrine disruption in wildlife and reproductive cancers in humans. Environ. Health Perspect., 115(5) 720-722. 

With respect to reproductive toxicology, concerns over endocrine-disrupting chemicals have become an intensive theme of research on both human and wildlife health (Colborn et al. 1996). For the assessment and testing of estrogens and other endocrine disrupters in aquatic life, see the work of Vos et al. (2000), Hutchinson et al. (2000), and Matthiessen (2003). Importantly, however, assessment of reproductive toxicity may also involve a genetic aspect in terms of the teratogens, con-... 

Human health biomonitoring may also use animal surrogates in the environment to assess potential health hazards to humans - the proverbial canary in the coal mine . For example, chemical and biomarker analysis of bodily fluids or tissue biopsies from family pets, especially dogs, are sometimes used to assess potential chemical exposure and effects in children. This is because dogs often accompany children in the outdoor environment, and both have a tendency to (accidentally or intentionally) consume environmental media such as soil and surface water There has also been an increasing trend to use native animals as sentinel species, that is, fish, wildlife, or invertebrates that are indicators of possible human health risks from environmental hazards. For example, increased incidences of tumors or endocrine disruption in fish may indicate the presence of compounds in the water that may cause cancer or reproductive dysfunction in humans. Concern has also been raised over the increased incidence of deformities in frogs, because these may indicate an increased level of chemicals in the environment, which can cause birth defects in humans. 

This activity was launched at the request of the member countries and the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD to ensure that testing and assessment approaches for endocrine disrupters would not substantially differ among countries. In addition to developing tests for endocrine disrupters in the human health and environmental fields, OECD has also developed a conceptual framework for endocrine disrupter testing, outlining consecutive steps that could be followed. 

Unfortunately, these herbicides are detected commonly in ground- and drinking water, and, accordingly, these molecules have been banned in Europe because their use has been linked to cancer and endocrine gland disruption in humans. 

The presence of some surfactants or their by-products in the aquatic environment has been considered to be a cause of endocrine disruption in the aquatic environment and ultimately in humans. Several workers have extensively reviewed and discussed the analysis, identification, and characterization of as well as the pollution problems associated with surfactants [ 145-147, 139,160]. 

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