A little-known chemical present in most humans’ blood system could be affecting juvenile behavior, according to a University study conducted by Emilie Rissman, professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics.
Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical found in many plastic products, is used to make some polymers and epoxy resins, which are then used in the lining of cans, plastic bottles and food containers. This compound then makes its way into the human body — Rissman said about 90 percent of humans have BPA in their bloodstream.
Rissman’s study examines the effects of the chemical on the behavior of juvenile mice whose mothers were exposed to the chemical during pregnancy.
“We started out because the chemical is fairly ubiquitous,” she said. “[And there is] a good amount of behavioral and developmental data that suggested exposure could be a bad thing.”
To test the effects of the drug from generation to generation, Rissman fed food containing BPA to a group of pregnant mice and gave a control group of pregnant mice food without the chemical. When the pups were born, they were given to a “foster mother” who raised the BPA and non-BPA pups all together, she said.
“We didn’t want the mother’s BPA-affected behavior to affect the behavior of the pups [and skew the results],” Rissman said.
Once the pups reached a certain age, they were put through multiple behavioral tests to judge the effect of the chemical on their social interactions. Mice are known to be very social animals. Although juvenile mice can be somewhat wary of each other, they will normally perform an array of “social” activities, such as side-by-side sitting or digging, exploring together or grooming each other.
As a behavioral test, Rissman put two juvenile mice in a cage together and observed their interactions, keeping in mind their respective BPA levels. She also conducted tests with an adult mouse in a confined area within the cage and a juvenile mouse free to roam the cage to observe whether the juvenile was actively interested in spending time with the adult.
These tests correlate to humans, who are also inherently social creatures, because many intellectual disabilities and childhood diseases manifest themselves in the form of a perceived disinterest or inability to participate in social interactions.
“The bottom line is that animals that were gestated on a level of BPA similar to the levels humans experience have some immediate differences as juveniles than those that are gestated BPA-free,” Rissman said.
Not only does the chemical change our behavior, it also is involved in the regulation of important genes in our brains. “We looked at some genes in the brain that are important for social behavior, and over all of the generations, expression levels were lower in BPA-exposed animals,” Rissman added.
Removing plastics from consumers’ lives would be nearly impossible, but many food-packaging and water bottle companies are making their products BPA-free in light of recent research like Rissman’s. So next time you go out shopping for canned tomatoes or a new Nalgene water bottle, consider looking for the BPA-free products.
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