(Press-News.org) WASHINGTON—Girls exposed to certain endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) may be more likely to start puberty early, according to new research published in Endocrinology, the flagship basic science journal of the Endocrine Society. EDCs mimic, block or interfere with hormones in the body's endocrine system.
There has been an alarming trend toward early puberty in girls, suggesting the influence of chemicals in our environment. Early puberty is associated with an increased risk of psychosocial problems, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and breast cancer.
“We conducted a comprehensive screen of 10,000 environmental compounds with extensive follow-up studies using human brain cells that control the reproductive axis, and our team identified several substances that may contribute to early puberty in girls,” said study author Natalie Shaw, M.D., M.M.Sc., of the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) in Durham, N.C.
Those substances include musk ambrette, which is a fragrance used in some detergents, perfumes, and personal care products, and a group of medications called cholinergic agonists.
“More research is needed to confirm our findings,” noted Shaw. “But the ability of these compounds to stimulate key receptors in the hypothalamus — the gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor [GnRHR] and the kisspeptin receptor [KISS1R] — raises the possibility that exposure may prematurely activate the reproductive axis in children.”
According to the research team, musk ambrette is potentially concerning because it can be found in personal care products, and some rat studies have suggested it can cross the blood-brain barrier. Children are less likely to encounter cholinergic agonists in their daily lives.
Canadian and European regulations restrict musk ambrette use because of its potential toxicity, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration removed the fragrance from its “generally recognized as safe” list. Yet it is still available on the market in some personal care products.
“This study suggests that, out of an abundance of caution, it is important for parents to only use personal care products for their children that are federally regulated,” Shaw said.
As part of the study, the research team screened a Tox21 10,000-compound library of licensed pharmaceuticals, environmental chemicals and dietary supplements against a human cell line overexpressing GnRHR or KISS1R. They conducted follow-up analysis using human hypothalamic neurons and zebrafish, finding that musk ambrette increased the number of GnRH neurons and GnRH expression.
“Using human hypothalamic neurons and zebrafish provides an effective model for identifying environmental substances that stimulate the KISS1R and GnRHR,” said co-author Menghang Xia, Ph.D., from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) in Bethesda, Md., which is part of NIH. “This study was a multidisciplinary team effort, and it showed that we can efficiently reduce the time and cost of assessing environmental chemicals for their potential effects on human health.”
Other study authors include: Shu Yang, Li Zhang, Jameson Travers, Ruili Huang, Vukasin Jovanovic, Rithvik Veeramacheni, Srilatha Sakamuru, Carlos Tristan, Carleen Klumpp Thomas, and Anton Simeonov of NCATS; Kamal Khan and Erica Davis of Northwestern University in Chicago, Ill.; and Kristine Witt of the NIEHS Division of Translational Toxicology.
NIEHS and NCATS funded the study.
The manuscript, “Identification of Environmental Compounds that May Trigger Early Female Puberty by Activating the Human GnRHR and KISS1R," was published online, ahead print.
# # #
Endocrinologists are at the core of solving the most pressing health problems of our time, from diabetes and obesity to infertility, bone health, and hormone-related cancers. The Endocrine Society is the world’s oldest and largest organization of scientists devoted to hormone research and physicians who care for people with hormone-related conditions.
The Society has more than 18,000 members, including scientists, physicians, educators, nurses and students in 122 countries. To learn more about the Society and the field of endocrinology, visit our site at www.endocrine.org. Follow us on Twitter at @TheEndoSociety and @EndoMedia.
END
Girls may start puberty early due to chemical exposure
Some endocrine-disrupting chemicals are of concern, study suggests
2024-09-10
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Innovative delivery, access to care necessary to increase health equity for rural patients with heart disease
2024-09-10
The American College of Cardiology’s Quality Summit 2024 will feature several poster presentations regarding rural health delivery and access to care that offer insights into innovative strategies to increase health equity for all heart disease patients. Research examines door-in-door-out and door-to-balloon (D2B) times for heart attack patients at critical access hospitals, improving door-to-thrombolytics for heart attack patients at rural hospitals, remote cardiac rehabilitation to increase access, and improving communications technology for EMS with STEMI patients in rural areas.
“Rurality creates unique challenges in delivering high quality cardiovascular ...
Study indicates delayed feedback enhances learning performance in individuals with traumatic brain injury
2024-09-10
East Hanover, NJ – September 10, 2024 – Kessler Foundation researchers have published a novel study exploring the effects of delayed feedback on learning in individuals with moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). The article, “Bypassing Striatal Learning Mechanisms Using Delayed Feedback to Circumvent Learning Deficits in Traumatic Brain Injury” (Doi: 10.1097/HTR.0000000000000947), was published online ahead of print on July 24, 2024, in The Journal of Head Trauma ...
PLOS and DTH-Lab partner to increase youth participation in science
2024-09-10
San Francisco, California, United States - The Public Library of Science (PLOS) and the Digital Transformations for Health Lab (DTH-Lab) today announced a strategic partnership between the organizations to increase youth participation in science to include mentorship opportunities, amplifying youth voices in scientific publishing and building a body of research in digital health citizenship with a mini-collection.
“This strategic partnership with DTH-Lab will ensure that youth is empowered ...
What’s really ‘fueling’ harmful algae in Florida’s lake Okeechobee?
2024-09-10
Lake Okeechobee is the largest lake in Florida and the second largest in the Southeastern United States. Over the past two decades, blooms of blue-green algae (Microcystis) have emerged in the lake and have been flushed into nearby urban estuaries, causing serious environmental and public health issues.
Excess nutrients from industries, agriculture and urban development – particularly nitrogen and phosphorus – are well-known causes of harmful algal blooms worldwide. Historically, Lake Okeechobee has only been considered to be impaired for phosphorus, ...
Soft cells: Rounded tile shapes echo those found in nature
2024-09-10
Tiles that fill two- and three-dimensional spaces with no gaps—including triangles, squares, hexagons, cubes, and other polyhedra—are typically designed with sharp corners and flat faces (straight edges). Gábor Domokos and colleagues explore soft and curved two- and three-dimensional tiles that completely fill space with a minimal number of sharp corners, which they term “soft cells.” The authors demonstrate how to soften polyhedral tiles by systematically deforming edges. The resulting shapes echo those found in nature, including river estuaries, zebra stripes, muscle tissue, and the chambers of seashells, including the Nautilus. Biological structures ...
Unravel Biosciences and SynGAP Research Fund (SRF) Announce clinical research to accelerate new and repurposed therapies for SYNGAP1-related disorders
2024-09-10
Mill Valley, CA – September 10, 2024 – The SynGAP Research Fund 501(c)(3) announced a collaboration with Unravel Biosciences, Inc., an AI-enabled therapeutics company, to initiate a clinical study aimed at generating primary clinical data, uncovering novel therapeutic targets, repurposing existing drugs, and stratifying SYNGAP1-Related Disorders (SRD) patients into subgroups based on their predicted response to selected drugs. This collaboration will utilize Unravel’s rareSHIFT™ discovery services and BioNAV™ AI platform to advance the development of targeted therapies for SRD.
As part of this ...
The Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group announces Allen Discovery Center for Neurobiology in Changing Environments
2024-09-10
SEATTLE, WASH.—September 10, 2024—Climate change is rapidly reshaping our oceans, stressing the nervous systems of marine organisms that have evolved over millions of years. Scientists now face a critical question: How do these environmental shifts affect these animals’ ability to sense and respond to their changing world?
To address this pressing issue, the Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group, a division of the Allen Institute, today announced the launch of the Allen Discovery Center (ADC) for Neurobiology in Changing Environments. This initiative, based at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California ...
Clinical hypnosis vs. cognitive behavioral therapy: What's better for managing hot flashes?
2024-09-10
CLEVELAND, Ohio (Sept 10, 2024)–Nonhormone options for hot flashes and other menopause symptoms are growing in popularity, especially for women who cannot take hormones due to health complications. Cognitive behavioral therapy and clinical hypnosis are common nonhormone treatment options. According to a new scoping review, however, one is more effective than the other. Results of the scoping review will be presented at the 2024 Annual Meeting of The Menopause Society in Chicago September 10-14.
Recognizing that a percentage of menopausal women cannot take hormone therapy either because of health restrictions, such as being a breast ...
Exploring the possible link between PTSD and early menopause
2024-09-10
CLEVELAND, Ohio (Sept 10, 2024) – Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can cause an array of adverse mental health effects, but physical side effects are also common. A new study conducted with Persian Gulf War female military personnel demonstrates that women with probable PTSD are twice as likely to experience early menopause and related health consequences. Results of the study will be presented at the 2024 Annual Meeting of The Menopause Society in Chicago September 10-14.
Commonly reported symptoms of PTSD include anger outbursts, anxiety, and difficulty concentrating and sleeping. Physically, PTSD can also be responsible for serious ...
Is hormone therapy good for heart health?
2024-09-10
CLEVELAND, Ohio (Sept 10, 2024)–Recent studies show that women can experience bothersome menopause symptoms, like hot flashes, for longer than originally estimated. As a result, more research is focusing on the long-term effects of hormone therapy. A new study suggests certain estrogen-based hormone therapies have favorable long-term effects on the risk of heart disease. Results of the study will be presented at the 2024 Annual Meeting of The Menopause Society in Chicago September 10-14.
Hormone therapy has been the subject of intense debate for more ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Community partners key to success of vaccine clinic focused on neurodevelopmental conditions
Low-carbon collaborative dual-layer optimization for energy station considering joint electricity and heat demand response
McMaster University researchers uncover potential treatment for rare genetic disorders
The return of protectionism: The impact of the Sino-US trade war
UTokyo and NARO develop new vertical seed distribution trait for soybean breeding
Research into UK’s use of plastic packaging finds households ‘wishcycle’ rather than recycle – risking vast contamination
Vaccine shows promise against aggressive breast cancer
Adverse events affect over 1 in 3 surgery patients, US study finds
Outsourcing adult social care has contributed to England’s care crisis, argue experts
The Lancet: Over 800 million adults living with diabetes, more than half not receiving treatment, global study suggests
New therapeutic approach for severe COVID-19: faster recovery and reduction in mortality
Plugged wells and reduced injection lower induced earthquake rates in Oklahoma
Yin selected as a 2024 American Society of Agronomy Fellow
Long Covid could cost the economy billions every year
Bluetooth technology unlocks urban animal secrets
This nifty AI tool helps neurosurgeons find sneaky cancer cells
Treatment advances, predictive biomarkers stand to improve bladder cancer care
NYC's ride-hailing fee failed to ease Manhattan traffic, new NYU Tandon study reveals
Meteorite contains evidence of liquid water on Mars 742 million years ago
Self-reported screening helped reduce distressing symptoms for pediatric patients with cancer
Which risk factors are linked to having a severe stroke?
Opening borders for workers: Abe’s profound influence on Japan’s immigration regime
How skills from hospitality and tourism can propel careers beyond the industry
Research shows managers of firms handling recalls should review media scrutiny before deciding whether to lobby
New model system for the development of potential active substances used in condensate modifying drugs
How to reduce social media stress by leaning in instead of logging off
Pioneering research shows sea life will struggle to survive future global warming
In 10 seconds, an AI model detects cancerous brain tumor often missed during surgery
Burden of RSV–associated hospitalizations in US adults, October 2016 to September 2023
Repurposing semaglutide and liraglutide for alcohol use disorder
[Press-News.org] Girls may start puberty early due to chemical exposureSome endocrine-disrupting chemicals are of concern, study suggests