title: Puberty dysregulation and increased risk of disease in adult life: possible modes of action.
abstract: Puberty is the developmental window when the final maturation of body systems is orchestrated by hormones; lifelong sex-related differences and capacity to interact with the environment are defined during this life stage. Increased incidence in a number of chronic, multifactorial diseases could be related to environmental exposures during puberty: however, insight on the susceptibility of the peripubertal period is still limited. The estrogen/androgen balance is a crucial axis in harmonizing the whole pubertal development, pointing out the significance of exposures to endocrine disruptors. Besides the reproductive system, endocrine-related perturbations may affect the maturation of skeleton, adipose tissues, brain, immune system, as well as cancer predisposition. Thus, risk assessment of environmental stressors should duly consider specific aspects of the pubertal window. Besides endocrine-related mechanisms, suggested research priorities include signaling molecules (e.g., kisspeptins, dopamine) as xenobiotic targets and disturbances of specific pubertal methylation processes potentially involved in neurobehavioral disorders and cancer risk in adulthood.
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mantovani
authors.affiliation: Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health, Zagreb, Croatia. Electronic address: afucic@imi.hr.
authors.forename: Aleksandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fucic
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000187:drug effects; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors / Q000633:toxicity*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced; D011627:Puberty / Q000187:drug effects*; D018570:Risk Assessment
chemical_list: D052244:Endocrine Disruptors; D004785:Environmental Pollutants
keywords: Adolescence; Cancer; Endocrine disruptors; Genotoxicity; Growth; Juvenile toxicology; Metabolism