title: Reproductive hormone levels in men exposed to persistent organohalogen pollutants: a study of inuit and three European cohorts.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Persistent organohalogen pollutant (POP) exposure may have a negative impact on reproductive function. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of POP exposure on the male hypothalamo-pituitary-gonadal axis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants included 184 Swedish fishermen and spouses of pregnant women from Greenland (n = 258), Warsaw, Poland (n = 113) , and Kharkiv, Ukraine (n = 194).
  
  
  METHODS
  Serum levels of 2,2,4,4,5,5-hexachlorobiphenyl (CB-153) and dichlorodiphenyl dichloroethene (p,p -DDE) were determined in the four populations, showing different exposure patterns: Swedish fishermen, high CB-153/low p,p -DDE; Greenland, high CB-153/high p,p -DDE; Warsaw, low CB-153/moderate p,p -DDE; Kharkiv, low CB-153/high p,p -DDE. Serum was also analyzed for testosterone, estradiol, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) , inhibin B, luteinizing hormone (LH) , and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) . Free testosterone levels were calculated based on testosterone and SHBG.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found significant center-to-center variations in the associations between exposure and the outcomes. The most pronounced effects were observed in Kharkiv, where statistically significant positive associations were found between the levels of both CB-153 and p,p -DDE and SHBG, as well as LH. In Greenland, there was a positive association between CB-153 exposure and LH. In the pooled data set from all four centers, there was positive association between p,p -DDE and FSH levels [beta = 1.1 IU/L; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.0-1.1 IU/L]. The association between CB-153 levels and SHBG was of borderline statistical significance (beta = 0.90 nmol/L; 95% CI, -0.04 to 1.9 nmol/L).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Gonadotropin levels and SHBG seem to be affected by POP exposure, but the pattern of endocrine response is the subject of considerable geographic variation.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Reproductive Medicine Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences, Malmö University Hospital, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden. aleksander.giwercman@med.lu.se
authors.forename: Aleksander H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Giwercman
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rignell-Hydbom
authors.forename: Gunnar
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Toft
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rylander
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hagmar
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lindh
authors.forename: Henning S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Pedersen
authors.forename: Jan K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Ludwicki
authors.forename: Vladimir
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lesovoy
authors.forename: Maryna
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shvets
authors.forename: Marcello
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Spano
authors.forename: Gian Carlo
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Manicardi
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bizzaro
authors.forename: Eva C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Bonefeld-Jorgensen
authors.forename: Jens Peter
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Bonde
mesh_terms: D015331:Cohort Studies; D003633:Dichlorodiphenyl Dichloroethylene / Q000097:blood / Q000633:toxicity; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000097:blood* / Q000633:toxicity*; D004958:Estradiol / Q000097:blood; D005060:Europe; D005260:Female; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D006846:Hydrocarbons, Halogenated / Q000097:blood* / Q000633:toxicity*; D007265:Inhibins / Q000097:blood; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000097:blood / Q000633:toxicity; D011247:Pregnancy; D012738:Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones; D006846:Hydrocarbons, Halogenated; D012738:Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin; C422364:inhibin B; D013739:Testosterone; D003633:Dichlorodiphenyl Dichloroethylene; D004958:Estradiol; D007265:Inhibins; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls