Effects of brominated and organophosphate ester flame retardants on male reproduction.

Environmental chemicals that interfere with the production and/or action of hormones may have adverse effects on male reproduction. This review focuses on the possible impact of exposure to flame retardant chemicals on male reproduction. Flame retardants are added to a wide variety of combustible materials to prevent fires from starting, slow their spread, and provide time to escape. However, these chemicals are often additive so they leach out into the environment. Governments have restricted the use of polybrominated diphenyl ether flame retardants based on evidence that they are persistent and bioaccumulate and have adverse effects on health. The phasing out of these "legacy" flame retardants has resulted in their replacement with alternatives, such as tetrabromobisphenol A and the organophosphate esters. To review the literature on the effects of brominated and organophosphate ester flame retardant chemicals on male reproduction. PubMed database was searched for studies reporting the effects of brominated and organophosphate ester flame retardants on male reproduction. Cell-based, animal model, and human studies provide evidence that the polybrominated diphenyl ethers act as endocrine-disrupting chemicals; further, exposure during critical windows of development may be associated with a permanent impact on male reproduction. In vitro and animal model data are accumulating with respect to the effects of tetrabromobisphenol A and organophosphate esters, but few studies have evaluated their impact on human health. More research on human exposure to replacement flame retardants and the possibility that they may be associated with adverse reproductive health outcomes is a high priority.

Hales BF ，Robaire B 《-》

Effects of flame retardants on ovarian function.

Flame retardants have been added to a variety of consumer products and are now found ubiquitously throughout the environment. Epidemiological, in vivo, and in vitro studies have shown that polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame retardants may have a negative impact on human health; this has resulted in their phase-out and replacement by alternative flame retardants, such as hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD), tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA), and organophosphate esters (OPEs). Evidence suggests that some of these chemicals induce ovarian dysfunction and thus may be detrimental to female fertility; however, the effects of many of these flame retardants on the ovary remain unclear. In this review, we present an overview of the effects of brominated and organophosphate ester flame retardants on ovarian function and discuss the possible mechanisms which may mediate these effects.

Wang X ，Hales BF ，Robaire B 《-》

Cross-sectional study of social behaviors in preschool children and exposure to flame retardants.

Lipscomb ST ，McClelland MM ，MacDonald M ，Cardenas A ，Anderson KA ，Kile ML ... -  《-》

Indoor organophosphate and polybrominated flame retardants in Tokyo.

Saito I ，Onuki A ，Seto H 《-》

Organophosphate compounds, polybrominated diphenyl ethers and novel brominated flame retardants in European indoor house dust: Use, evidence for replacements and assessment of human exposure.

52 pollutants including organophosphate flame retardants and plasticizers (OPs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) were evaluated in household dust from Belgium, Italy and Spain. Pollutant pattern was dominated by ∑OPs (12.8 μg/g; median) followed in decreasing order by ∑PBDEs (229 ng/g), decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE, 130 ng/g), 1,2-bis(2,4,6-tribromophenoxy)ethane (BTBPE, 1.35 ng/g), hexabromobenzene (HBB, 0.28 ng/g) and finally pentabromoethylbenzene (PBEB, 0.03 ng/g). Country differences and substitution of regulated chemicals by unregulated ones were explored. Results clearly reflected a decrease in c-penta and c-octaBDE commercial mixtures, which are mainly substituted by OPs, BTBPE and PBEB. On the other hand, c-decaBDE concentrations increased in Spanish case. However, positive correlations with its proposed substitute (DBDPE) and recent restricted policies make it possible to assume that this trend will change in the coming years. On the basis of the relationship between pollutants, house characteristics and inhabitant habits, potential sources were studied. Finally, data obtained were used to determine estimated daily intakes (EDI) via house dust ingestion and dermal absorption for toddlers and adults at central and upper percentiles. Calculated EDI levels even at worst case scenario were below available reference dose (RfD) values in all cases.

de la Torre A ，Navarro I ，Sanz P ，de Los Ángeles Martínez M ... -  《-》