Molecular Mechanisms Underlying the Action of Environmental Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals

摘要

The reproductive hazards of environmental endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EEDs) to fish, wildlife and humans have been causing alarm among the general public. Increased incidence of hypospadia and retaned testis, and decrease in sperm counts in humans have been suspected to be caused by EEDs. The mechanisms of ontogeny and differentiation from stem cells to adult adrenal and gonadal organs (testis and ovary) to produce steroid hormones through the cascade of transcription factors, such as Ad4BP (SF-1), WT-1, DAX-1, SOX-9, androgen receptor (AR) and estrogen receptor (ER), have been recently established (Fig. 1).