{"id":1920,"date":"2012-04-03T14:15:01","date_gmt":"2012-04-03T19:15:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/news\/?p=1920"},"modified":"2015-11-12T08:02:12","modified_gmt":"2015-11-12T14:02:12","slug":"early-life-exposure-to-bpa-affects-adult-learning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/news\/early-life-exposure-to-bpa-affects-adult-learning\/","title":{"rendered":"Early-life exposure to BPA affects adult learning"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Daniel Weber, senior scientist with UWM\u2019s Children\u2019s Environmental Health Science Center, displays the T-maze in which he tested the cognitive abilities of zebrafish exposed to BPA as embryos. (Photos by Troye Fox<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In testing the effects of the controversial chemical bisphenol A (BPA) on zebrafish, UWM scientist Daniel Weber found himself in familiar territory.<\/p>\n

The results he observed were similar to those he\u2019d seen when exposing the fish to mercury during their early development \u2013 profound behavioral changes occurred not only immediately after hatching, but also in adulthood.<\/p>\n

Like developmental exposure to mercury, adult fish that had been exposed to tiny amounts of BPA as embryos had learning and memory problems, compared to fish that had not been exposed.<\/p>\n

Weber, a researcher with the NIEHS Children\u2019s Environmental Health Science Center at UWM, collaborated with Robert Tanguay at Oregon State University. Their pilot study, funded by the center, is the first to identify a neurobehavioral effect of BPA using a zebrafish model exposed to concentrations comparable to what humans might encounter in the environment.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat was amazing is that exposure only happened at the embryonic stage,\u201d says Weber, \u201cbut somehow the wiring in the brain had been permanently altered by it. It\u2019s an example of why children are not just little adults when it comes to gauging the effects of contaminants.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zebrafish as sentinels<\/strong><\/p>\n

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A lone zebrafish chooses the right arm at the T-maze intersection. Weber\u2019s test involved training the fish to choose the left arm, and then reversing the task so that the fish again chose the right.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

BPA is widely used in plastic food containers and container liners. Conflicting reports of its safety have made it the subject of vigorous public debate. Amid the debate, the Campbell\u2019s Soup Company recently announced it would be removing BPA from the linings of the company\u2019s soup cans as soon as a viable alternative is found.<\/p>\n

At issue is the amount of exposure with some studies concluding BPA is a health risk only at concentrations that are higher than environmental levels. Results of this study, however, suggest that lower concentrations may be more potent during early-life exposures. This study tested three different small amounts considered environmentally relevant.<\/p>\n

The compound, which mimics the hormone estrogen, was added to the aquatic environment of fish embryos in their first two days of life. Then they were returned to clean water for the ensuing 10 months while they grew into middle-age adulthood.<\/p>\n

Since zebrafish mature in only a few months, they are a useful model to test effects of toxicity over a lifetime. Scientists also can control the conditions and timing of chemical exposure with zebrafish because the embryos can live outside the mother.<\/p>\n

Tanguay says the low concentrations of BPA they used don\u2019t cause physical malformations or cardiac defects. But even without physical abnormalities, behavioral deficits can still occur, as this study indicates.<\/p>\n

The exam<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Video by Mary Rinzel
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