A plea for risk assessment of endocrine disrupting chemicals. 2013

Emanuela Testai, and Corrado L Galli, and Wolfgang Dekant, and Marina Marinovich, and Aldert H Piersma, and Richard M Sharpe
Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Department of Environment and Primary Prevention, Mechanisms of Toxicity Unit, Viale Regina Elena, 299, Rome, Italy. Electronic address: emanuela.testai@iss.it.

Some recent EU Regulations have focused on the potential risks posed by the presence of endocrine disrupters (ED) into the environment. However there are conflicting opinions on how to assess the risk from exposure to these molecules that can reversibly modulate hormonal activity, endocrine active substances (EAS) rather than causing irreversible damage (ED). The present paper attempts to discuss that perturbation of normal endocrine homeostasis in itself may not be an adverse effect, since the endocrine system is naturally dynamic and responsive to various stimuli as part of its normal function and it is modulated according to the characteristic trend of the dose-response curve. EDs should be evaluated using a weight-of-evidence (WoE) approach. If a chemical meets the criteria to be defined as an ED in experimental animals, the relevance of observed effects to the human then needs to be addressed. Hazard-based risk management is therefore not justified since does not meet the criteria for a sound scientifically based assessment.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D004305 Dose-Response Relationship, Drug The relationship between the dose of an administered drug and the response of the organism to the drug. Dose Response Relationship, Drug,Dose-Response Relationships, Drug,Drug Dose-Response Relationship,Drug Dose-Response Relationships,Relationship, Drug Dose-Response,Relationships, Drug Dose-Response
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000818 Animals Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA. Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D052244 Endocrine Disruptors Exogenous agents, synthetic and naturally occurring, which are capable of disrupting the functions of the ENDOCRINE SYSTEM including the maintenance of HOMEOSTASIS and the regulation of developmental processes. Endocrine disruptors are compounds that can mimic HORMONES, or enhance or block the binding of hormones to their receptors, or otherwise lead to activating or inhibiting the endocrine signaling pathways and hormone metabolism. Endocrine Disrupting Chemical,Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals,Endocrine Disruptor,Endocrine Disruptor Effect,Endocrine Disruptor Effects,Chemical, Endocrine Disrupting,Chemicals, Endocrine Disrupting,Disrupting Chemical, Endocrine,Disruptor Effect, Endocrine,Disruptor Effects, Endocrine,Disruptor, Endocrine,Disruptors, Endocrine,Effect, Endocrine Disruptor,Effects, Endocrine Disruptor
D018570 Risk Assessment The qualitative or quantitative estimation of the likelihood of adverse effects that may result from exposure to specified health hazards or from the absence of beneficial influences. (Last, Dictionary of Epidemiology, 1988) Assessment, Risk,Benefit-Risk Assessment,Risk Analysis,Risk-Benefit Assessment,Health Risk Assessment,Risks and Benefits,Analysis, Risk,Assessment, Benefit-Risk,Assessment, Health Risk,Assessment, Risk-Benefit,Benefit Risk Assessment,Benefit-Risk Assessments,Benefits and Risks,Health Risk Assessments,Risk Analyses,Risk Assessment, Health,Risk Assessments,Risk Benefit Assessment,Risk-Benefit Assessments
D018675 Toxicity Tests An array of tests used to determine the toxicity of a substance to living systems. These include tests on clinical drugs, foods, and environmental pollutants. Tests, Toxicity,Test, Toxicity,Toxicity Test

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