Endocrine disruptors chemicals (EDC) are defined as exogenous chemical substances, or mixtures of substances, that can alter the endocrine system and interfere with any aspect of the hormonal action. Some of these compounds are present in nature, but the majority are artificial, they are produced by industrial processes and released into the environment by the activities of humans with a marked impact on ecosystems, animal welfare, or human health. Bisphenol A (BPA) is habitually used as a monomer for the production of polycarbonate plastics and for the synthesis of epoxy resins and it is omnipresent in the environment due to its high production volume and its worldwide use. Humans are exposed to BPA through the digestive tract, the respiratory tract and through the skin. It has a particular pharmacokinetic profile as it can generate non-monotonic dose-response curves and therefore have repercussions on living organisms even at very low doses; this feature, together with additive effects with other EDCs, genetic polymorphisms etc. represents a considerable challenge for the risk assessment of this substance. BPA is defined as a xenoestrogen and is therefore able to exert pro and anti-estrogenic and anti-androgenic effects. BPA interacts in particular with nuclear receptors by altering gene expression. It can induce toxicity to different tissues, organs and systems such as the neuroendocrine system, the reproductive system, the immune system etc. in addition to inducing carcinogenesis in sensitive tissues. There are critical windows in which an individual is particularly subject to the effects of BPA on the organism and on development: especially susceptible to BPA exposure are fetuses and infants. The purpose of this thesis is to provide an overview of the effects of Bisphenol A on human health through the review of numerous scientific studies.
Le sostanze chimiche che alterano il sistema endocrino (EDC) si definiscono interferenti endocrini e sono sostanze chimiche esogene, o miscele di sostanze, che interferiscono con qualsiasi aspetto dellazione ormonale. Alcuni di questi interferenti possono essere presenti in natura ma la maggior parte sono prodotti da processi industriali e rilasciati nell'ambiente dalle attività degli esseri umani con considerevole impatto sugli ecosistemi, sul benessere degli animali e sulla salute umana. Il Bisfenolo A (BPA) è utilizzato come monomero per la produzione di plastiche in policarbonato e per la sintesi di resine epossidiche ed è onnipresente nellambiente a causa del suo elevato volume di produzione e del suo utilizzo su scala mondiale. Luomo è esposto al BPA attraverso il tratto digestivo, il tratto respiratorio e attraverso la cute. Presenta un profilo farmacocinetico particolare in quanto può generare curve dose-risposta non monotoniche ed avere quindi ripercussioni sugli organismi viventi anche a bassissime dosi; questa caratteristica, insieme agli effetti additivi con altri EDC, ai polimorfismi genetici e ad altre concause, rappresenta una sfida considerevole per la valutazione del rischio di questa sostanza. Il BPA può essere definito uno xenoestrogeno ed è quindi in grado di esercitare effetti pro e anti-estrogenici e anti-androgenici. Il BPA interagisce in particolar modo con i recettori nucleari alterando lespressione genica. Macroscopicamente può indurre tossicità in diversi tessuti, organi e sistemi come il sistema neuroendocrino, il sistema riproduttivo, il sistema immunitario, oltre a indurre carcinogenesi in tessuti sensibili. Esistono delle finestre di criticità, in particolare il periodo fetale e perinatale, in cui un individuo è particolarmente soggetto agli effetti del BPA. Lo scopo di questa tesi è quello di fornire una panoramica degli effetti del Bisfenolo A sulla salute umana attraverso la rassegna di numerosi studi scientifici.
Interferenti endocrini: effetti del Bisfenolo A sulla salute umana
PETRICCIONE, ANGELICA
2018/2019
Abstract
Endocrine disruptors chemicals (EDC) are defined as exogenous chemical substances, or mixtures of substances, that can alter the endocrine system and interfere with any aspect of the hormonal action. Some of these compounds are present in nature, but the majority are artificial, they are produced by industrial processes and released into the environment by the activities of humans with a marked impact on ecosystems, animal welfare, or human health. Bisphenol A (BPA) is habitually used as a monomer for the production of polycarbonate plastics and for the synthesis of epoxy resins and it is omnipresent in the environment due to its high production volume and its worldwide use. Humans are exposed to BPA through the digestive tract, the respiratory tract and through the skin. It has a particular pharmacokinetic profile as it can generate non-monotonic dose-response curves and therefore have repercussions on living organisms even at very low doses; this feature, together with additive effects with other EDCs, genetic polymorphisms etc. represents a considerable challenge for the risk assessment of this substance. BPA is defined as a xenoestrogen and is therefore able to exert pro and anti-estrogenic and anti-androgenic effects. BPA interacts in particular with nuclear receptors by altering gene expression. It can induce toxicity to different tissues, organs and systems such as the neuroendocrine system, the reproductive system, the immune system etc. in addition to inducing carcinogenesis in sensitive tissues. There are critical windows in which an individual is particularly subject to the effects of BPA on the organism and on development: especially susceptible to BPA exposure are fetuses and infants. The purpose of this thesis is to provide an overview of the effects of Bisphenol A on human health through the review of numerous scientific studies.È consentito all'utente scaricare e condividere i documenti disponibili a testo pieno in UNITESI UNIPV nel rispetto della licenza Creative Commons del tipo CC BY NC ND.
Per maggiori informazioni e per verifiche sull'eventuale disponibilità del file scrivere a: unitesi@unipv.it.
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14239/18911