The study by Jobling et al. (1995) investigates the estrogenic properties of various chemicals found in sewage, a major source of environmental pollution. The researchers screened 20 organic man-made chemicals present in liquid effluents and found that half of them interacted with the estradiol receptor, inhibiting the binding of 17β-estradiol to the fish estrogen receptor. Further in vitro studies using mammalian estrogen screens revealed that two phthalates, butylbenzyl phthalate (BBP) and di-n-butylphthalate (DBP), and the food antioxidant butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) were estrogenic, though less so than the environmental estrogen octylphenol. The authors highlight the potential health implications of these findings, suggesting that environmental estrogens may contribute to human diseases such as disorders of the male reproductive tract and breast and testicular cancers. They emphasize the need for further in vivo studies to confirm the role of these chemicals in disease development. The study also discusses the widespread presence of phthalates in the environment and their potential for bioaccumulation in animal fat, as well as the cumulative effects of exposure to multiple estrogenic chemicals.The study by Jobling et al. (1995) investigates the estrogenic properties of various chemicals found in sewage, a major source of environmental pollution. The researchers screened 20 organic man-made chemicals present in liquid effluents and found that half of them interacted with the estradiol receptor, inhibiting the binding of 17β-estradiol to the fish estrogen receptor. Further in vitro studies using mammalian estrogen screens revealed that two phthalates, butylbenzyl phthalate (BBP) and di-n-butylphthalate (DBP), and the food antioxidant butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) were estrogenic, though less so than the environmental estrogen octylphenol. The authors highlight the potential health implications of these findings, suggesting that environmental estrogens may contribute to human diseases such as disorders of the male reproductive tract and breast and testicular cancers. They emphasize the need for further in vivo studies to confirm the role of these chemicals in disease development. The study also discusses the widespread presence of phthalates in the environment and their potential for bioaccumulation in animal fat, as well as the cumulative effects of exposure to multiple estrogenic chemicals.