Reproductive toxicity of commercial PCB mixtures: LOAELs and NOAELs from animal studies

This paper reviews the developmental/reproductive toxicity of commercial polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) mixtures in animals and reports on the "no-observable-adverse-effect levels" (NOAELs) and "lowest-observable-adverse-effect levels" (LOAELs) from these studies. Identification of the lowest effective doses for reproductive toxicity of PCB mixtures is difficult because a variety of reproductive and developmental effects have been reported in several species using different commercial mixtures. Factors to be considered include sensitivity of the end point, sensitivity of species, study quality, biological plausibility, and relevance to humans. End points affected at the lowest doses (sensitive end points) included postnatal growth, development, and function. Among species for whom sensitive end points have been evaluated, a LOAEL of 0.25 mg/kg/day was identified for rodents on the basis of developmental delays in growth and behavioral function, and a LOAEL of 0.008 mg/kg/day was identified for nonhuman primates based on postnatal skin hyperpigmentation. NOAELs were not identifiable for these sensitive end points because effects were reported at the lowest doses tested.