Human data on bisphenol a and neurodevelopment.

摘要

In this issue of EHP, Braun et al. (2009) report that the concentration of bisphenol A (BPA) in maternal urine from early pregnancy is associated with female offspring having more externalizing behavior. Hyperactivity and aggression are externalizing behaviors, and both are more frequent in boys than in girls (Holling et al. 2008; Stene-Larsen et "al. 2009). Sexually dimorphic behaviors in female rodents have been shown to be masculinized by exogenous estrogens (Ryan and Vandenbergh 2006), and BPA is weakly estrogenic in most experimental systems (Kuiper et al. 1998). Early pregnancy is the time in humans when masculinizing hormones first have their effects on the human brain (Cohen-Bendahan et al. 2005). I congratulate Braun and colleagues for bringing forth epidemiologic data on a topic for which it is most welcome and timely. Regulators at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are currently reconsidering policy on BPA (U.S. FDA 2009). Thus, interpretation of the new results needs especially careful consideration.