Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons And Male Reproductive Health

描述（由申请人提供）：多环芳烃与男性生殖健康尽管对精子质量下降的报道引起了高度关注；缺乏与工作相关的环境暴露有关的流行病学数据。然而，越来越多的动物研究证据表明，多环芳烃（PAHs）会导致雄性大鼠生殖系统功能障碍。与此同时，多环芳烃暴露是否对人类男性生殖健康有影响尚无定论。该项目的长期目标是：i)发展实地数据收集方法，以监测人类职业接触多环芳烃的情况；Ii)评估暴露的生殖改变潜力；iii)评估遗传易感性对多环芳烃暴露的影响；最终（iv）传播保护工人健康和安全的信息。我们假设多环芳烃暴露导致焦炉工人精子质量下降，特别是那些易感基因多态性的工人。研究部分描述了一项横断面研究，以表征焦炉工人的精子质量，量化多环芳烃生物标志物水平，并检测CYP1A1和GSTM1基因的等位基因变异。尿液样本将被收集以确定多环芳烃的内部暴露水平。将收集基线血清样本进行CYP1A1和GSTM1等位基因变异的基因型分析。收集精液以评估精子质量、DNA完整性和多环芳烃DNA加合物。该设计的特点包括有效控制混杂因素，准确确定暴露，足够的功率检测暴露相关的生殖指标变化；设计效率评估多态性对多环芳烃代谢的影响。研究结果可能促使工作场所的做法和政策进行改革，以保护接触多环芳烃的工人的生殖健康。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Male Reproductive Health Despite heightened concerns over reported declines in sperm quality; a lack of epidemiologic data exists regarding a link to job-related environmental exposure. Increasing evidence, however, from animal studies has shown that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) contribute to male rat reproductive system dysfunction. At the same time, PAH exposure as a contributing factor to male reproductive health in humans is still inconclusive. The long term goals of the project are: i) to develop field data collection methods to monitor human occupational exposure to PAHs; ii) to evaluate the reproductive altering potential of the exposure; iii) to evaluate the influence of genetic susceptibility to PAH exposure; and ultimately iv) to distribute the information to protect workers' health and safety. We hypothesize that PAH exposure contributes to decreased sperm quality of coke-oven workers, especially those with susceptible gene polymorphisms. The research component describes a cross-sectional study to characterize coke-oven workers' sperm quality, quantify PAH biomarker levels, and detect allelic variants in CYP1A1 and GSTM1 genes. Urine samples will be collected for determining PAH internal exposure levels. Baseline serum samples will be collected for genotype analysis of CYP1A1 and GSTM1 allelic variants. Semen will be collected to assess sperm quality and DNA integrity, and PAH-DNA adducts. Features of this design include efficient control for confounding factors, accurate exposure ascertainment, sufficient power to detect exposure related changes in reproductive indicators; and design efficiency to evaluate polymorphic influence on PAH metabolization. Research results may prompt reforms in workplace practices and policies to protect the reproductive health of workers exposed to PAHs. Public Health Relevance: The study aims to assess individual coke-oven workers' susceptibility to PAHs from occupational exposure, which may cause decreased sperm quality.