Using a recently developed approach for testing endocrine disruptive chemicals (EDCs) in amphibians, comprising synchronized tadpole exposure plus genetic and histological sexing of metamorphs in a flow-through-system, we tested the effects of 17β-Trenbolone (Tb), a widely used growth promoter in cattle farming, in three deeply diverged anuran families: the amphibian model species
Xenopus laevis
(Pipidae) and the non-models
Bufo
(
tes
)
viridis
(Bufonidae) and
Hyla arborea
(Hylidae). Trenbolone was applied in three environmentally and/or physiologically relevant concentrations (0.027 µg/L (10
−10
M), 0.27 µg/L (10
−9
M), 2.7 µg/L (10
−8
M)). In none of the species, Tb caused sex reversals or masculinization of gonads but had negative species-specific impacts on gonad morphology and differentiation after the completion of metamorphosis, independently of genetic sex. In
H
.
arborea
and
B
.
viridis
, mounting Tb-concentration correlated positively with anatomical abnormalities at 27 µg/L (10
−9
M) and 2.7 µg/L (10
−8
M), occurring in
X
.
laevis
only at the highest Tb concentration. Despite anatomical aberrations, histologically all gonadal tissues differentiated seemingly normally when examined at the histological level but at various rates. Tb-concentration caused various species-specific mortalities (low in
Xenopus
, uncertain in
Bufo
). Our data suggest that deep phylogenetic divergence modifies EDC-vulnerability, as previously demonstrated for Bisphenol A (BPA) and Ethinylestradiol (EE2).
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