EOH Research Seminar Series: Dr. Joseph Braun

"Behavioral Consequences of early life exposure to phthalates and bisphenol A"

The developing fetus and infant are susceptible to environmental toxicants due to immature detoxification pathways, rapidly developing organ systems, and increased absorption per unit body mass.  Endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs), like bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates, are ubiquitous toxicants that may impact nervous system development by interfering with sex-steroid mediated processes.  Sex-steroids are important in the development of sexually dimorphic behaviors including play style/behavior, aggression, anxiety, and visuospatial abilities. Sexually-dimorphic human disorders like attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, and autism may be clinical correlates of sexually dimorphic animal behaviors and may serve as sensitive endpoints for the evaluating the toxicity of EDCs.  This presentation will present results examining relationships between BPA/phthalates and neurobehavioral endpoints from an ongoing prospective birth cohort of 207 mother-child dyads who have been followed from early pregnancy to 5-years of age.  Future research directions, including potential mechanisms of action, will be discussed.

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