Household chemical may affect breast cancer
development
A chemical found in household fittings has been found to affect the
development of the mammary gland in rats and further studies will be
required to determine if the presence of this chemical could lead to
breast cancer.
New research published in the online open access journal BMC Genomics
is the first to show that this chemical can affect the breasts'
genomic profile.
Jose Russo and coworkers from the Fox Chase Cancer Center in
Philadelphia, along with colleagues from the University of Alabama in
Birmingham, US, fed lactating rats with butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP),
which their offspring then absorbed via breast milk. The offspring
ingested levels of chemical estimated to be nearly equivalent to the
Environmental Protection Agency's safe dose limit of BBP for humans.
The researchers found that BBP had a transitory effect on certain
characteristics of the female offspring of the rats, such as the ratio
of uterine weight to body weight and the genetic profile of the
mammary gland. Dr Russo stated: "We are the first to report that
neonatal/prepubertal exposure to BBP induced modifications in the gene
expression of the mammary tissue."
Although these effects wore off once exposure to BBP was removed, the
subtle changes in the mammary gland may have an effect later in life.
BBP is widely used as a plasticizer, an additive used to soften
polymers, and is found in household fittings such as pipes, vinyl
floor tiles and carpet backing. This type of chemical is known to be
an endocrine disruptor, which mimics the effect of hormones. Endocrine
disruptors are known to damage wildlife and they have also been
implicated in reduced sperm counts and neurological problems in humans.
Further Information and Source:
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Open access article: Raquel Moral , Richard Wang , Irma H Russo , Daniel A Mailo ,
Gabriela A Balogh , Coral A Lamartininere and Jose Russo: The plasticizer butyl benzyl phthalate induces genomic changes in
rat mammary gland after neonatal/prepubertal exposure.
In: BMC Genomics 2007, 8:453;
doi: 10.1186/1471-2164-8-453.
