Associations of organochlorines with endogenous hormones in male Great Lakes fish consumers and nonconsumers.
This study investigated the relationships of steroid and thyroid hormones with total noncoplanar polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), total toxic equivalents (TEQs) from dioxins-like organochlorines, and dichlorodiphenyl dichloroethene (DDE) in 56 male frequent and infrequent Great Lakes sport caught fish consumers. Significant negative associations were found for triiodothyronine (T3), thyroxine (T4), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG)-bound testosterone with PCBs, for TSH with total TEQs, and for estrone sulfate with DDE, adjusting for age, body mass index, and medication use. Follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, free testosterone, and SHBG were not significantly associated with organochlorines. Models that accounted for exposure to both PCBs and TEQs predicted T4, estrone sulfate, and SHBG-bound testosterone better than models that included either PCBs or TEQs alone, with the lowest hormone levels occurring in the participants with both higher PCB levels and lower TEQ levels. These data suggest that exposure to PCBs, dioxin-like organochlorines, and DDE, alone and potentially in combination, may be associated with effects on the endocrine system in adult males. Further studies should help delineate specific exposure effects and effects of exposures to other common environmental contaminants alone and in combination with PCBs.
Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1603 W. Taylor Street, Room 879, (M/C 923), Chicago, IL 60612, USA. mturyk1@uic.edu
Mary E
ME
Turyk
Henry A
HA
Anderson
Sally
S
Freels
Robert
R
Chatterton
Larry L
LL
Needham
Donald G
DG
Patterson
Dyan N
DN
Steenport
Lynda
L
Knobeloch
Pamela
P
Imm
Victoria W
VW
Persky
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D004357:Drug Synergism; D004435:Eating; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors / Q000097:blood; D005399:Fishes; D020387:Food Chain; D005506:Food Contamination; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones / Q000097:blood*; D006728:Hormones / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D006843:Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000097:blood / Q000633:toxicity*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013963:Thyroid Hormones / Q000097:blood*
D052244:Endocrine Disruptors; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones; D006728:Hormones; D006843:Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated; D013963:Thyroid Hormones