Melissa Perry, Sc.D., M.H. S., professor
and chair of the Department of
Environmental and Occupational
Health at the GW School of Public
Health and Health Services and
adjunct associate professor at the
Harvard School of Public Health, led
an observational study indicating that
environmental exposure to
organochlorine chemicals, including
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) and
p,p '-DDE (the main metabolite of the
insecticide DDT) can affect male
reproduction. The research was
published online in the journal
Environmental Health Perspectives.
The researchers studied 192 men who
were part of couples that were sub-
fertile, to see if the men with higher
levels of organochlorines in their
blood showed evidence of increased
rates of sperm abnormalities. They
looked for sperm disomy, which
occurs when sperm cells have an
abnormal number of chromosomes.
While all men have a certain number
of sperm with such abnormalities,
researchers found that men with
higher levels of DDE and PCBs had
significantly higher rates of sperm
abnormalities.
"This research adds to the already
existing body of evidence suggesting
that environmental exposure to
certain chemicals can affect male
fertility and reproduction. We need to
further understand the mechanisms
through which these chemicals impact
sperm," said Dr. Perry. "While we
cannot avoid chemicals that already
persist in the environment, it is
imperative that decisions about
putting biologically active chemicals
into the environment need to be
made very carefully, because there
can be unanticipated consequences
down the road."
The researchers used a new sperm
imaging methodology developed by
Dr. Perry and colleagues to detect the
chromosomal abnormalities, which
allowed them to study a larger
sampling of individuals than previous
studies.
and chair of the Department of
Environmental and Occupational
Health at the GW School of Public
Health and Health Services and
adjunct associate professor at the
Harvard School of Public Health, led
an observational study indicating that
environmental exposure to
organochlorine chemicals, including
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) and
p,p '-DDE (the main metabolite of the
insecticide DDT) can affect male
reproduction. The research was
published online in the journal
Environmental Health Perspectives.
The researchers studied 192 men who
were part of couples that were sub-
fertile, to see if the men with higher
levels of organochlorines in their
blood showed evidence of increased
rates of sperm abnormalities. They
looked for sperm disomy, which
occurs when sperm cells have an
abnormal number of chromosomes.
While all men have a certain number
of sperm with such abnormalities,
researchers found that men with
higher levels of DDE and PCBs had
significantly higher rates of sperm
abnormalities.
"This research adds to the already
existing body of evidence suggesting
that environmental exposure to
certain chemicals can affect male
fertility and reproduction. We need to
further understand the mechanisms
through which these chemicals impact
sperm," said Dr. Perry. "While we
cannot avoid chemicals that already
persist in the environment, it is
imperative that decisions about
putting biologically active chemicals
into the environment need to be
made very carefully, because there
can be unanticipated consequences
down the road."
The researchers used a new sperm
imaging methodology developed by
Dr. Perry and colleagues to detect the
chromosomal abnormalities, which
allowed them to study a larger
sampling of individuals than previous
studies.
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