Pollution and Reproductive Damage
- Editore:
VDM Verlag
- EAN:
9783639135831
- ISBN:
3639135830
- Pagine:
- 192
- Formato:
- Paperback
- Lingua:
- Tedesco
Descrizione Pollution and Reproductive Damage
Hormonally active compounds (pesticides, herbicides,bacterial agents, and synthetic hormones) continue tobe released into the environment. These compoundsare widely spread, highly persistent, bioavailable,and most importantly present at physiologicallyrelevant concentrations. Many aquatic andterrestrial populations have exhibited signs ofdistress or have been severely impacted because ofexposure to such pollutants. Apoptosis is awell-conserved hormonally controlled physiologicalpathway that is highly sensitive to exposure topollutants and xenobiotics. Endocrine activecompounds can cause disturbances in hormonal controlof apoptosis and alter development or maintenance ofreproductive tissue in growing or reproductivelymature individual. These changes can cause reducedreproductive capacity in the exposed individual. Herewe offer first evidence that petrochemicalcontaminants induce apoptosis in highly proliferatingreproductive, hematopoietic, and immune (thymus, bonemarrow, and spleen) tissue of small mammals living oncontaminated sites; we also show that aquaticpollution effects on reproductive fitness can bemonitored using in vitro cultures of fish eggs.
