Parameters of ovarian reserve in relation to urinary concentrations of parabens

Abstract

Background: Parabens are synthetic chemicals commonly used in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, food and beverage processing as antimicrobial preservatives. In experimental animals, parabens exposure was associated with adverse effects on female reproduction. Despite the widespread use of parabens little is known about their effect on female fecundity. The objective of the current analysis was to evaluate the associations of urinary parabens concentrations with parameters of ovarian reserve among women undergoing treatment in a fertility clinic. Methods: Five hundred eleven female aged 25-39 years who attended the infertility clinic in central region of Poland for diagnostic purposes were recruited between September 2014 and February 2019. Urinary concentrations of parabens were measured by a validated gas chromatograohy ion-tap mass spectrometry method. Parameters of ovarian reserve were: antral follicle count (AFC), anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and estradiol (E 2 ) levels. Results: The geometric mean of specific gravity adjusted urinary concentrations of methyl (MP), ethyl (EP), propyl (PP), butyl (BP) and izobutyl paraben (iBuP) were 107.93 μg/L, 12.9 μg/L, 18.67 μg/L, 5.02 μg/L and 2.80 μg/L. Urinary concentrations of PP in the third quartile of exposure ((50-75] percentyl) were inversely associated with antral follicle count (p = 0.048), estradiol level (p = 0.03) and positively with FSH concentration (p = 0.026). MP, EP, BP and iBuP parabens were not associated any with parameters of ovarian reserve. Conclusions: Chronic exposure to PP may potentially contributing to reduced fecundity and impair fertility. As this is one of the first study to investigate the potential effect of parabens on ovarian reserve further epidemiological studies with longer duration of observation are needed.

Evaluation of human exposure to parabens in north eastern Poland through hair sample analysis

“…Therefore, the above-mentioned data confirm that the inhabitants of Poland are exposed to the adverse effects of parabens, not only contained, for example, in cosmetics, but also polluting the environment. Knowledge concerning biomonitoring of human exposure to PBs in people living in Poland are also extremely scanty and limited to only three studies 26 – 28 . These studies have described concentration levels of selected PBs in human urine.…”

“…The concentration of MePB (the PB observed in the human body in the highest concentration) fluctuates from 0.8 ng/g in human breast milk in the USA 25 to 14,187 ng/g in the hair in Spain 13 , according to the literature. However the knowledge of human exposure to PBs in Poland is extremely scanty and limited to a description of PBs present in human urine 26 – 28 .…”

Reproductive Health Risks Associated with Occupational and Environmental Exposure to Pesticides

“…Environmental Exposure Studies Using Direct Exposure Assessment/Biomonitoring Strategies Jurewicz et al in 2020 studied exposure to pyrethroid pesticides and ovarian reserve in 511 females, aged 25-39 years, attending an infertility clinic in Poland [34]. Greater urinary concentrations of 3-PBA were associated with decreased antral follicle count (p = 0.02) and levels of anti-mullerian hormone (AMH) (p = 0.03) and increased follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) (p = 0.04).…”

Outdoor air pollution and diminished ovarian reserve among infertile Korean women

“…For example, heavy smoking, long-term exposure to secondhand smoking, and indoor burning of wood or artificial fire logs have been found to be associated with decreased ovarian reserve in some studies [ 10 , 11 ]; however, these findings were not replicated in other studies [ 12 , 13 ]. Environmental exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals such as parabens was reported to be negatively associated with ovarian reserve [ 14 ]. Recent reports corroborate that exposure to higher levels of PM is associated low ovarian reserve parameters [ 15 – 17 ].…”