The plastic chemical bisphenol-A (known as BPA) - widely used in baby bottles, epoxy resins, food storage containers and other plastic products - can have serious long-term effects on female development, say researchers from the Yale School of Medicine. Hugh S. Taylor, at the Yale School of Medicine, said the study shows that BPA changes the expression of key developmental genes that form the uterus. If pregnant women are exposed to the estrogen-like properties in BPA, it may impact female reproductive tract development and the future fertility of female fetuses.
The study was based on laboratory experiments involving pregnant female mice who received a range of doses of BPA on days 9-16 of their pregnancies. The aim was to see what interaction BPA would have with the HOXA10 gene, which is necessary for uterine development. The researchers found that BPA does alter the expression of the HOXA 10 gene, implying that exposure to the popular plastics component may lead to infertility in humans.
"The net effect is concerning," said Taylor. "We are all exposed to multiple estrogen-like chemicals in industrial products, food and pollutants." Previous studies have found BPA to be implicated in the early onset of puberty and another Yale team found that low doses of BPA in female rats inhibited estrogen induction in the brain, which can lead to learning impairment and, in old age, neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease.
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Source: Yale University
