Phthalate's multiple hormonal effects and their supplementary dietary regulation scheme of health risks for children

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Zhenzhen Han1,2, Jiaqi Xue1,2, Yu Li3,4

  • 1Key Laboratory of Resource and Environmental System Optimization, Ministry of Education, North China Electric Power University, Beijing, 102206, China.

Environmental Science and Pollution Research International
|January 7, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Certain phthalate esters (PAEs) can disrupt children's hormones. Kiwi fruit and broccoli show promise in mitigating these effects by promoting PAE metabolism and inhibiting hormone receptor binding.

Area of Science:

  • Environmental Health
  • Endocrinology
  • Computational Chemistry

Background:

  • Phthalic acid esters (PAEs) are common endocrine disruptors with known adverse effects on children's hormonal balance.
  • Exposure to PAEs like BBzP, DBP, DEHP, and DNOP is a significant public health concern, necessitating strategies to mitigate their impact.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the hormonal effects of common PAEs during different supplementary food intakes.
  • To develop a supplementary diet regulation scheme to prevent or mitigate PAE-induced health risks in children.
  • To provide theoretical support for reducing hormonal disruption in children exposed to PAEs.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized factorial design experiments, molecular docking, and molecular dynamics simulations to analyze PAE-hormone interactions.
  • Calculated MM/PBSA binding energies between PAEs and hormone receptors.
  • Simulated the effects of 10 different foods as external interference factors on PAE hormonal activity.

Main Results:

  • Kiwi fruit and broccoli were identified as effective in alleviating the hormonal effects of PAEs.
  • Supplementary diets were found to significantly promote the metabolism of Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP).
  • Mechanism analysis confirmed that selected supplementary diets inhibit the binding of PAEs to hormone receptors.

Conclusions:

  • Dietary interventions, specifically incorporating kiwi fruit and broccoli, can effectively mitigate the endocrine-disrupting effects of PAEs in children.
  • Supplementary diets play a crucial role in regulating PAE hormonal effects by enhancing metabolism and blocking receptor binding.
  • This research offers a dietary strategy to reduce the health risks associated with PAE exposure in pediatric populations.

Keywords:
Children’s health risksHormone effectMolecular dynamics simulationPhthalatePhthalic acid esters (PAEs)Supplementary dietary regulation

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