Endocrine system study

Limited data are available on in vitro effects of barium on the endocrine system. Studies done with isolated pancreatic islet cells from mice show barium is transported across the cell membrane and incorporated into organelles, especially the mitochondria and secretory granules (Berggren et al. 1983). Barium was found to increase cytoplasmic calcium consequently, the insulin- releasing action of barium may be mediated by calcium. Barium has also been found capable of stimulating the calcitonin secretion system of the thyroid in pigs (Pento 1979). 

Interaction of vitamin D and its metaboUtes with sex hormones has been demonstrated, particularly ia birds ia which the egg-laying functions combine calcium needs and reproductive activity. The metaboUtes of vitamin D behave as hormones. As such, they play an active role ia the endocrine system, along with other hormones, to maintain the various body functions. Several biological influences of metaboUtes of vitamin D have been studied, including effects related to cancer (193—197), skin diseases (198—201), immunomodulatory effects (202,203), and Alzheimer s disease (204—206) (Fig. 9). 

Fish have many advantages as experimental models in the study of endocrine disruption, and although they do have some significant differences in their endocrine system to that of mammals, the underlying basis is very similar. Chemicals which are shown to be either actual or potential endocrine disrupters... 

From these studies, some patterns of effect potentially mediated by the endocrine system have been observed. These include the accumulation of vitellogenin in ticks [50-52] and accelerated ovarian development in beetles and ticks [51, 53]. Different researchers have attributed these effects to a range of different mechanisms, including induced excitation of neurosecretory cells releasing juvenile hormone [50], and ecdysteroid disruption either by blocking the neuropeptide itself or at the epidermal site of synthesis [51]. Other researchers have not corroborated these results and have even found contradictory effects, e.g., suppressed ovarian development [52], Therefore at present for SPs, there is no clear evidence for adverse population-relevant effects with an underlying endocrine mode of action. 

Let us share an example. The body s hormone system is called the endocrine system. Endocrine comes from a Greek prefix that means within (endo-) and a Greek root word that means separate (krineiri). This makes sense when you realize that hormones are substances that carry instructions between separate organs within your body. By adding the suffix -ologist (which means one who studies) to... 

Depending upon the circumstance and desired effects, endocrine-disrupting chemicals can be either good or bad. The endocrine system is a finely balanced system responsible for fertility and many of the feminine and masculine traits we are all familiar with. Endocrine disruptors are used by millions of women in the form of the pill to control fertility. Chemicals in birth control pills subtly manipulate the endocrine system to reduce fertility. Unfortunately, we now know that many chemicals are capable of influencing the endocrine systems. When these chemicals, such as DDT and TCDD, are released into the environment, they reduce the fertility of wildlife. Exposure to endocrine disruptors is linked to decreased fertility in shellfish, fish, birds, and mammals. Endocrine disruptors such as nonylphenol have been shown to feminize male fish, interfering with reproduction. Some studies have also linked exposure to endocrine disruptors to decreases in human male sperm count. Ironically, urinary metabolites of the birth control pill as well as the female hormone estrogen pass through waste treatment plants and are released into the aquatic environment, where even small concentrations cause feminization of male fish. 

Most of the knowledge that we have regarding the interaction of chemicals with the endocrine system comes from in vitro receptor binding data. These receptor interaction data form the basis for many of the structure-activity relationships that have been derived for potential endocrine disruptors. It is important to note that potency measured in in vitro studies may or may not be relevant to the in vivo situation. The relative binding affinity (RBA) and potency of binding vary significantly within a given class of substances. For example, Branham et al. [11] reported... 

Polybrominated Biphenyls. PBBs have the potential to interact with the endocrine system based on effects that mainly include changes in levels of thyroid and female reproductive hormones. No studies were located that investigated the estrogenic and antiestrogenic activity of PBBs in vitro or in vivo at the level of the estrogen receptor. 

Stochastic responses under conditions of the experiment should be reviewed carefully with respect to the relevance of the evidence to humans (e.g., the occurrence of bladder tumors in the presence of bladder stones and implantation site sarcomas). Interpretation of animal studies is aided by the review of target organ toxicity and other effects (e.g., changes in the immune and endocrine systems) that may be noted in pre-chronic or other toxicologic studies. Time- and dose-related incidence of pre-neoplastic lesions may also be helpful in interpreting animal studies. 

Therefore, when it became clearly understood that atrazine is neither estrogenic nor a genotoxic, direct-acting carcinogen - and that the atrazine-associated tumor responses appeared only in female SD rats, a strain with a high, normally occurring incidence of mammary tumors - it became important to study the effect of high doses of atrazine on the SD animal model s own endocrine system and hormonal milieu. 

Almost a decade before the term pheromone was coined, Roth and Willis (1952) conducted seminal experiments that characterized volatile and contact pheromones in cockroaches. Louis Roth s research integrated studies of endocrinology and behavior, and the influence of this approach was reflected in Barth s early articulation of the interplay between the endocrine system and sexual behavior. In later years cockroaches continued to serve as important models for invertebrate endocrinology (Scharrer, 1987 Tobe and Stay, 1985), but research on pheromones lagged, in part due to technical difficulties in sex pheromone identification. Below, we highlight some of the many issues yet to be resolved in the physiological and behavioral regulation of sex pheromone production and emission in cockroaches. 

This study is designed for a test substance which has shown some effects on endocrine systems during me preceding toxicology evaluation (28 days treatment in rats, or in dogs), however without a distinct profile related to a specific endocrine system. 

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