Antiandrogenic activity of humic substances.
For long, natural organic matter (NOM) composed mainly of humic substances (HS) were regarded as inert in the ecosystems with respect to their possible chemical interaction with exposed organisms. However recently, NOM have been shown to elicit various adverse effects generally attributed to synthetic xenobiotics, including estrogenic effects translating into shifts of the gender ratios in populations. However, the anti/androgenic pathway was not yet evaluated. Here, we applied an anti/androgenic sensitive cell line MDA stably transfected with the firefly luciferase gene under transcriptional control of the androgen responsive element. With five out of twelve tested NOM preparations, particularly with soil and coal isolates, we identified a relatively high, concentration-dependent antiandrogenic effect. This appears to be the first study to show this endocrine disrupting pathway for a ubiquitous biogeochemical matrix, a potential activity which should not be neglected in forthcoming studies on synthetic endocrine disruptors in the environment.
Masaryk University, Research Centre for Toxic Compounds in the Environment, Kamenice 3, 625 00 Brno, Czech Republic.
Michal
M
Bittner
Nadine
N
Saul
Christian E W
CE
Steinberg
D000726:Androgen Antagonists / Q000633:toxicity*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors / Q000633:toxicity*; D005618:Fresh Water; D006801:Humans; D006812:Humic Substances / Q000633:toxicity*; D049409:Luciferases, Firefly / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D009499:Neutral Red / Q000737:chemistry; D009930:Organic Chemicals / Q000633:toxicity; D014162:Transfection; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000633:toxicity*
D000726:Androgen Antagonists; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors; D006812:Humic Substances; D009930:Organic Chemicals; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D009499:Neutral Red; D049409:Luciferases, Firefly