title: Cadmium may impair prostate function as measured by prostate specific antigen in semen: A cross-sectional study among European and Inuit men.
abstract: We investigated the association between cadmium in blood and the concentration of the prostate specific antigen (PSA) in semen, including the modifying effects of zinc or the CAG polymorphism in the androgen receptor (AR). Blood and semen samples were collected from 504 partners of pregnant women in Greenland, Poland and Ukraine. We found an inverse trend between cadmium and PSA (log(β) = -0.121, 95% confidence interval (CI): -0.213; -0.029, P = 0.0103) in Greenlandic men. Similar results were observed in men with a high number of CAG repeats (CAG 24) (log(β) = -0.231, 95% CI: -0.363; -0.098, P = 0.0009). Inverse trends between cadmium and PSA were found when semen zinc concentrations were below the median value for men from Ukraine and Greenland. These outcomes suggest that cadmium may impair prostate function, as measured by PSA in semen, while high zinc levels and a low number of CAG repeats protects against this action.
authors: Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy. Electronic address: ale.andreucci86@gmail.com.
authors: Alessandro
authors: A
authors: Andreucci
authors: Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2400 København NV, Denmark.
authors: Emina
authors: E
authors: Mocevic
authors: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Lund University Hospital, SE-221 85 Lund, Sweden.
authors: Bo A G
authors: BA
authors: Jönsson
authors: Reproductive Medicine Centre, Malmö University Hospital, SE 205 02 Malmö, Sweden.
authors: Aleksander
authors: A
authors: Giwercman
authors: Lund University, Department of Translational Medicine, SE 205 02 Malmö, Sweden.
authors: Yvonne Lundberg
authors: YL
authors: Giwercman
authors: Department of Occupational Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark.
authors: Gunnar
authors: G
authors: Toft
authors: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Lund University Hospital, SE-221 85 Lund, Sweden.
authors: Thomas
authors: T
authors: Lundh
authors: Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell'Ambiente, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy.
authors: Davide
authors: D
authors: Bizzaro
authors: Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2400 København NV, Denmark.
authors: Ina Olmer
authors: IO
authors: Specht
authors: Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2400 København NV, Denmark.
authors: Jens Peter
authors: JP
authors: Bonde
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002104:Cadmium / Q000097:blood* / Q000633:toxicity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006116:Greenland / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D004930:Inuit / Q000235:genetics; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011044:Poland / Q000453:epidemiology; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D011467:Prostate / Q000187:drug effects; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen / Q000032:analysis*; D011944:Receptors, Androgen / Q000235:genetics*; D012661:Semen / Q000737:chemistry*; D014455:Ukraine / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult; D015032:Zinc / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: C410798:AR protein, human; D011944:Receptors, Androgen; D002104:Cadmium; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen; D015032:Zinc
keywords: Androgen receptors; CAG repeats; Cadmium; Prostate; Prostatic specific antigen; Zinc