US EPA

2192867 

Journal Article 

Endocrine disrupting chemicals and spermatogenesis 

Mori, C 

2000 

1 

Teratology
ISSN: 0040-3709
EISSN: 1096-9926 

DART/TER/20001059 

62 

3 

English 

Etiological studies have reported that a possible cause of regional declines in sperm counts, increases in hypospadias in human males, and accelerated puberty in girls is due to exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals (DCs). Disturbances of hormonal regulation during fetal or postnatal development in humans may induce adverse effects on the male reproductive system. But adverse effects of EDCs on humans are less clear. Therefore, we investigated fetal exposure to EDCs in Japan by analysing umbilical cords, and changes of testis weight and spematogenesis in Japanese men by using analytical data of necropsy. 1. Detection of EDCs in human umbilical cords in Japan: Human umbilical cords, a part of the fetal tissue, were collected from normal newborns. We detected dioxins, PCBs, DDTs, hexachlorocyclohexane (BHC), chlordens and heavy metals (Cd, Pb and Hg) in both human umbilical cords and cord blood. Bisphenol A and nonylphenols were also detected in human umbilical cords. 2. Analysis of testis weight and spermatogenesis in Japanese men: We examined medicolegal data of about 20,000 Japanese men (20-39 years old) who were subjected to necropsy from 1948 to 1998. The weight of testes with caput epididymis increased constantly from 1948 until 1980, but has slightly declined since then. From the analysis of interrelation among birth year, age and testis weight, we also found that puberty in boys has accelerated as well as with girls in Japan.