Impact of environmental endocrine disruptors on adolescent sexual development: a comprehensive review with a focus on specific chemicals

Environmental endocrine disruptors (EDCs) are exogenous chemicals present in the environment. EDCs can be either naturally occurring or synthetic and include phthalate esters (PAEs), bisphenol A (BPA), diethylstilbestrol (DES), perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), zearalenone (ZEA), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and fluorene-9-bisphenol (BHPF). EDCs accumulate in the environment over extended durations and can enter the body through water, air, food, or contact with home and office decoration materials. They can induce notable adverse effects on reproductive endocrine function in humans and organisms and their offspring. Animal experiments have shown that EDCs exhibit anti-estrogen, pseudo/anti-androgen, and pseudo/antithyroid hormone activities; to date, estrogen-like or anti-androgenic activities have been observed most frequently. These activities affect the endocrine and reproductive functions of developing animals, including reproductive toxicity. EDC exposure has been found to be most strongly associated with estrogen concentrations in girls and women. Adolescent girls are at a developmental stage, and their hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axes are sensitive to EDC exposure. EDCs, especially PAEs, may be important factors in adolescent sexual development abnormalities, which manifest primarily as sexual precociousness in women. Therefore, it is important to study the relationship between EDCs and the incidence of precocious puberty.