| Evaluating Cumulative Risk Assessment for Environmental Justice: A Community Case Study Francesco Dessì-Fulgheri,1 Stefania Porrini,2 and Francesca Farabollini2 1Department of Animal Biology and Genetics, University of Firenze, Firenze, Italy; 2Institute of Human Physiology, University of Siena, Siena, Italy Abstract
In higher vertebrates, estrogen can exert an organizational effect on sexually dimorphic areas of the central nervous system (CNS) during the perinatal phase of development. The possibility that estrogenic pollutants may mimic estrogen action on the CNS during development and produce long-lasting or irreversible effects is an issue of great concern. Bisphenol A (BPA) , a compound widely used in the food industry and in dentistry, has proven estrogenic actions. To study its potential developmental effects on behavior, we gave female Sprague-Dawley rats 40 µg/kg/day BPA from conception to weaning postnatal day 21 and 400 µg/kg/day BPA from gestation day 14 to postnatal day 6. After exposure, we studied social behavior in a play situation in juvenile male and female offspring. The attempt to use play behavior to study the effects of BPA yielded some interesting results. We observed an early action of BPA on several behavioral categories in both males and females. In particular we observed a masculinization of female behavior in two behavioral categories (play with females and sociosexual exploration) , an effect probably mediated by the estrogenic activity of BPA in the CNS. These long-lasting effects of BPA could have important consequences at individual and population levels. Key words: bisphenol A, environmental estrogens, play behavior, rat, sex differences, social behavior. Environ Health Perspect 110(suppl 3) :403-407 (2002) . http://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2002/suppl-3/403-407dessi-fulgheri/abstract.html
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