Internship Report and Monography entitled "Endocrine disruptors present in food and their role in female infertility"

Abstract

Segundo a Organização Mundial da Saúde, a infertilidade é um problema de Saúde Pública que afeta cerca de 48 milhões de casais e 186 indivíduos em todo o mundo. Muitos motivos de diferentes naturezas estão por trás deste problema, sendo os desreguladores endócrinos um dos que levanta mais preocupações, dado que se trata de uma problemática que tende e evoluir com a evolução da própria sociedade. Muitos tipos de químicos são utilizados na indústria alimentar, podendo facilmente entrar na cadeia alimentar, afetando diretamente a saúde humana, e permanecendo omnipresentes na população. Os desregulados endócrinos têm a capacidade de interferir na ação hormonal normal, no metabolismo e na biossíntese, o que pode levar a uma alteração da homeostase hormonal normal. O bisfenol A e os seus metabolitos, os ftalatos, as dioxinas, e os compostos organoclorados e organofosforados são grupos de compostos considerados por ter a capacidade de perturbar a atividade endócrina. Alguns desses efeitos já foram caracterizados em estudos experimentais em animais e humanos, e em ensaios clínicos. Embora não haja consistência dentro da sociedade científica, alguns destes desreguladores endócrinos estão intimamente associados a doenças positivamente correlacionadas com a infertilidade feminina, como por exemplo, a síndrome dos ovários policísticos, a endometriose e também com alguns distúrbios em processos como a esteroidogénese e o desenvolvimento de folículos ovários.1.Introduction Infertility is a global public health concern that affects around 8 to 12% of couples in reproductive age worldwide. According to the WHO, infertility is defined as "a disease of the male or female reproductive system defined by the failure to achieve a pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse".1 It has a huge impact on the population in cause since the couples can experience depression, anxiety, distress, reduced self-esteem, and a feeling of guilt and blame during the process.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), infertility is a public health problem that affects around 48 million couples and 186 individuals worldwide. Many reasons with different natures are behind this, endocrine disruptors (EDs) are one of the reasons that raise more concern, given that it is a problem that has evolved with the progress of society. Many types of chemicals are used in the food industry, which can easily enter the food chain, directly affecting human health, and remain ubiquitous in the population. Endocrine disruptors have the capacity of interfering with the normal hormonal action, metabolism, and biosynthesis, which can lead to a variation of the normal hormonal homeostasis. Bisphenol A (BPA) and its metabolites, phthalates, dioxins, organochlorine, and organophosphate compounds are groups of chemicals considered to have the capacity to disrupt endocrine activity. Some of these effects have already been characterized in experimental studies with animals and humans, and in clinical trials. Even though is not considered to be consistent alongside the scientific society, some of these endocrine disruptors are highly associated with diseases that are positively correlated with female infertility, such as polycystic ovary syndrome, endometriosis, and also disturbances on processes as steroidogenesis and development of the ovarian follicles.1.Introduction Infertility is a global public health concern that affects around 8 to 12% of couples in reproductive age worldwide. According to the WHO, infertility is defined as "a disease of the male or female reproductive system defined by the failure to achieve a pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse".1 It has a huge impact on the population in cause since the couples can experience depression, anxiety, distress, reduced self-esteem, and a feeling of guilt and blame during the process.