Skip Navigation
 
For more information about this archival news release, please contact Robin Mackar(http://www.niehs.nih.gov/news/media/index.cfm), News Director, Office of Communications & Public Liaison(http://www.niehs.nih.gov/about/od/ocpl/index.cfm) at (919) 541-0073 or by email at rmackar@niehs.nih.gov.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
February 27, 1997
#97-05
NIEHS CONTACT:
Tom Hawkins
(919) 541-1402
 

27 Feb 1997: Common Chemical Shows Estrogen-Like Action

Bisphenol A, a chemical used in some plastic products, shows estrogen-like activity in mice and can pass from pregnant mice to their offspring, the males of which have enlarged prostates as adults, University of Missouri-Columbia scientists report in the current Environmental Health Perspectives, the journal of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. Whether bisphenol A leaches from the plastics to an extent that might pose a risk to humans is in dispute. Additional research is planned.

 

The UM-C scientists said the chemical's estrogen-like effect "appears at much lower doses than previously thought" and ";lies within the range of current human exposure."

 

The researchers -- Susan C. Nagel, Frederick S. vom Saal, Kristina A. Thayer, Minati G. Dhar, Mike Boechler and Wade V. Welshons -- reported that they introduced bisphenol A in pregnant mice at a time when the prostate is developing in the fetus and that subsequently the male offsprings' prostates were found to be enlarged at adulthood.

▲ Up: NIEHS Researcher Breaks New Ground in the Fight against Breast Cancer (http://www.niehs.nih.gov/news/newsroom/releases/news-archive/1997/march05/index.cfm)

▼ Down: Three Mile Island Nuclear Accident Data Revisited (http://www.niehs.nih.gov/news/newsroom/releases/news-archive/1997/february24/index.cfm)

Back to Top