The fetal ovary exhibits temporal sensitivity to a ‘real-life’ mixture of environmental chemicals

The development of fetal ovarian follicles is a critical determinant of adult female reproductive competence. Prolonged exposure to environmental chemicals (ECs) can perturb this process with detrimental consequences for offspring. Here we report on the exposure of pregnant ewes to an environmental...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Leach, Richard G., Amezaga, Maria R., Loup, Benoit, Mandon-Pépin, Béatrice, Stefansdottir, Agnes, Filis, Panagiotis, Kyle, Carol, Zhang, Zulin, Allen, Ceri E., Purdie, Laura, Jouneau, Luc, Cotinot, Corinne, Rhind, Stewart M., Sinclair, Kevin D., Fowler, Paul A.
Format: Article
Published: Nature Publishing Group 2016
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/37660/
_version_ 1848795505518182400
author Leach, Richard G.
Amezaga, Maria R.
Loup, Benoit
Mandon-Pépin, Béatrice
Stefansdottir, Agnes
Filis, Panagiotis
Kyle, Carol
Zhang, Zulin
Allen, Ceri E.
Purdie, Laura
Jouneau, Luc
Cotinot, Corinne
Rhind, Stewart M.
Sinclair, Kevin D.
Fowler, Paul A.
author_facet Leach, Richard G.
Amezaga, Maria R.
Loup, Benoit
Mandon-Pépin, Béatrice
Stefansdottir, Agnes
Filis, Panagiotis
Kyle, Carol
Zhang, Zulin
Allen, Ceri E.
Purdie, Laura
Jouneau, Luc
Cotinot, Corinne
Rhind, Stewart M.
Sinclair, Kevin D.
Fowler, Paul A.
author_sort Leach, Richard G.
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description The development of fetal ovarian follicles is a critical determinant of adult female reproductive competence. Prolonged exposure to environmental chemicals (ECs) can perturb this process with detrimental consequences for offspring. Here we report on the exposure of pregnant ewes to an environmental mixture of ECs derived from pastures fertilized with sewage sludge (biosolids): a common global agricultural practice. Exposure of pregnant ewes to ECs over 80 day periods during early, mid or late gestation reduced the proportion of healthy early stage fetal follicles comprising the ovarian reserve. Mid and late gestation EC exposures had the most marked effects, disturbing maternal and fetal liver chemical profiles, masculinising fetal anogenital distance and greatly increasing the number of altered fetal ovarian genes and proteins. In conclusion, differential temporal sensitivity of the fetus and its ovaries to EC mixtures has implications for adult ovarian function following adverse exposures during pregnancy.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T19:33:09Z
format Article
id nottingham-37660
institution University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T19:33:09Z
publishDate 2016
publisher Nature Publishing Group
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling nottingham-376602020-05-04T17:43:12Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/37660/ The fetal ovary exhibits temporal sensitivity to a ‘real-life’ mixture of environmental chemicals Leach, Richard G. Amezaga, Maria R. Loup, Benoit Mandon-Pépin, Béatrice Stefansdottir, Agnes Filis, Panagiotis Kyle, Carol Zhang, Zulin Allen, Ceri E. Purdie, Laura Jouneau, Luc Cotinot, Corinne Rhind, Stewart M. Sinclair, Kevin D. Fowler, Paul A. The development of fetal ovarian follicles is a critical determinant of adult female reproductive competence. Prolonged exposure to environmental chemicals (ECs) can perturb this process with detrimental consequences for offspring. Here we report on the exposure of pregnant ewes to an environmental mixture of ECs derived from pastures fertilized with sewage sludge (biosolids): a common global agricultural practice. Exposure of pregnant ewes to ECs over 80 day periods during early, mid or late gestation reduced the proportion of healthy early stage fetal follicles comprising the ovarian reserve. Mid and late gestation EC exposures had the most marked effects, disturbing maternal and fetal liver chemical profiles, masculinising fetal anogenital distance and greatly increasing the number of altered fetal ovarian genes and proteins. In conclusion, differential temporal sensitivity of the fetus and its ovaries to EC mixtures has implications for adult ovarian function following adverse exposures during pregnancy. Nature Publishing Group 2016-03-02 Article PeerReviewed Leach, Richard G., Amezaga, Maria R., Loup, Benoit, Mandon-Pépin, Béatrice, Stefansdottir, Agnes, Filis, Panagiotis, Kyle, Carol, Zhang, Zulin, Allen, Ceri E., Purdie, Laura, Jouneau, Luc, Cotinot, Corinne, Rhind, Stewart M., Sinclair, Kevin D. and Fowler, Paul A. (2016) The fetal ovary exhibits temporal sensitivity to a ‘real-life’ mixture of environmental chemicals. Scientific Reports, 6 . 22279/1-22279/13. ISSN 2045-2322 http://www.nature.com/articles/srep22279 doi:10.1038/srep22279 doi:10.1038/srep22279
spellingShingle Leach, Richard G.
Amezaga, Maria R.
Loup, Benoit
Mandon-Pépin, Béatrice
Stefansdottir, Agnes
Filis, Panagiotis
Kyle, Carol
Zhang, Zulin
Allen, Ceri E.
Purdie, Laura
Jouneau, Luc
Cotinot, Corinne
Rhind, Stewart M.
Sinclair, Kevin D.
Fowler, Paul A.
The fetal ovary exhibits temporal sensitivity to a ‘real-life’ mixture of environmental chemicals
title The fetal ovary exhibits temporal sensitivity to a ‘real-life’ mixture of environmental chemicals
title_full The fetal ovary exhibits temporal sensitivity to a ‘real-life’ mixture of environmental chemicals
title_fullStr The fetal ovary exhibits temporal sensitivity to a ‘real-life’ mixture of environmental chemicals
title_full_unstemmed The fetal ovary exhibits temporal sensitivity to a ‘real-life’ mixture of environmental chemicals
title_short The fetal ovary exhibits temporal sensitivity to a ‘real-life’ mixture of environmental chemicals
title_sort fetal ovary exhibits temporal sensitivity to a ‘real-life’ mixture of environmental chemicals
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/37660/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/37660/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/37660/