Health risks to female fertility hormones associated with radiological toxicity from uranium: a study on female infertility outcomes

After the Gulf Wars in 1991 and 2003, as well as ISIS, Iraq's environment has experienced significant pollution and degradation, earning it a dubious classification as one of the world's most polluted areas, according to the World Pollution Review. This poses serious health risks to the local population, including a significant increase in female infertility. In this study, uranium concentrations were measured in blood samples collected from three groups: a healthy group (<i>n</i> = 20), primary infertile females (<i>n</i> = 29) and secondary infertile females (<i>n</i> = 11). Uranium concentration was determined by irradiating blood samples with a thermal neutron source (Am-Be) (3.024 × 10⁹ n cm^-2). Hormone concentrations in serum blood were measured using a Snibe Maglumi 800 (CLIA); the concentration of uranium in healthy females was at the rate of 0.712 ppb less than 0.810 ppb limit recommended by ICRP/WHO, while they were high for females suffering from primary and secondary infertility, at a rate of 1.149 and 1.148 ppb, respectively. The effect of uranium on female fertility hormones is of biological significance, especially when exposed to toxic or radioactive levels of uranium, this is a negative indicator of the toxic effect of uranium on female hormones, as there is a clear hormonal imbalance in the concentration of FSH, LH, β-hCG, E2 and progesterone, resulting the inability to get pregnant. One of the most common causes in recent years is the problem of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), which is a high ratio in infertile females (primary infertility 16 % and secondary infertility 21 %) as a result of abnormalities in hormonal levels due to the radiological toxicity effect of uranium.