• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
Saturday, September 6, 2025
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Biology

Exposure to common chemical during pregnancy may reduce protection against breast cancer

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
March 16, 2021
in Biology
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0
IMAGE
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

UMass Amherst research suggests propylparaben is an endocrine disruptor

IMAGE

Credit: UMass Amherst

Low doses of propylparaben – a chemical preservative found in food, drugs and cosmetics – can alter pregnancy-related changes in the breast in ways that may lessen the protection against breast cancer that pregnancy hormones normally convey, according to University of Massachusetts Amherst research.

The findings, published March 16 in the journal Endocrinology, suggest that propylparaben is an endocrine-disrupting chemical that interferes with the actions of hormones, says environmental health scientist Laura Vandenberg, the study’s senior author. Endocrine disruptors can affect organs sensitive to hormones, including the mammary gland in the breast that produces milk.

“We found that propylparaben disrupts the mammary gland of mice at exposure levels that have previously been considered safe based on results from industry-sponsored studies. We also saw effects of propylparaben after doses many times lower, which are more reflective of human intake,” Vandenberg says. “Although our study did not evaluate breast cancer risk, these changes in the mammary tissue are involved in mitigating cancer risk in women.”

Hormones produced during pregnancy not only allow breast tissue to produce milk for the infant, but also are partly responsible for a reduced risk of breast cancer in women who give birth at a younger age.

The researchers, including co-lead author Joshua Mogus, a Ph.D. student in Vandenberg’s lab, tested whether propylparaben exposure during the vulnerable period of pregnancy and breastfeeding adversely alters the reorganization of the mammary gland. They examined the mothers’ mammary glands five weeks after they exposed the female mice to environmentally doses of propylparaben during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Compared with pregnant mice that had not received propylparaben, the exposed mice had mammary gland changes not typical of pregnancy, the researchers report. These mice had increased rates of cell proliferation, which Vandenberg says is a possible risk factor for breast cancer. They also had less-dense epithelial structures, fewer immune cell types and thinner periductal collagen, the connective tissue in the mammary gland.

“Some of these changes may be consistent with a loss of the protective effects that are typically associated with pregnancy,” says Mogus, who was chosen to present the research, deemed “particularly newsworthy” by the Endocrine Society, at the international group’s virtual annual meeting, ENDO 2021, beginning March 20.

Mogus says future studies should address whether pregnant females exposed to propylparaben are actually more susceptible to breast cancer. “Because pregnant women are exposed to propylparaben in many personal care products and foods, it is possible that they are at risk,” Mogus says, adding that pregnant and breastfeeding women should try to avoid using products containing propylparaben and other parabens.

“This chemical is so widely used, it may be impossible to avoid entirely,” Mogus adds. “It is critical that relevant public health agencies address endocrine-disrupting chemicals as a matter of policy.”

###

This research received funding from the University of Massachusetts Commonwealth Honors College Grant, the Endocrine Society’s Summer Research Fellowship and the National Institutes of Health.

Other study co-authors are Charlotte LaPlante, Ruby Bansal, Klara Matouskova, Shannon Silva, Elizabeth Daniele, Mary Hagen and Karen Dunphy, all of UMass Amherst; Benjamin Schneider and Sallie Schneider of Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Mass.; and D. Joseph Jerry of UMass Amherst’s Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences and Pioneer Valley Life Sciences Institute in Springfield.

Media Contact
Patty Shillington
[email protected]

Original Source

https://www.umass.edu/newsoffice/article/exposure-common-chemical-preservative

Related Journal Article

http://dx.doi.org/10.1210/endocr/bqab041

Tags: BiologyBiomedical/Environmental/Chemical EngineeringBreast CancerCarcinogensEndocrinologyEnvironmental HealthEpidemiologyMedicine/HealthPublic HealthToxicology
Share12Tweet8Share2ShareShareShare2

Related Posts

blank

Enhancing TCGA Cancer Research with Multi-Omics Integration

September 6, 2025
Guide to Genome Sequencing in Non-Model Organisms

Guide to Genome Sequencing in Non-Model Organisms

September 6, 2025

Giant Gourami: Insights on Gonadal Development and Maturity

September 6, 2025

Nanopore Tech Unlocks Complete Foot-and-Mouth Virus Genomes

September 6, 2025
Please login to join discussion

POPULAR NEWS

  • blank

    Breakthrough in Computer Hardware Advances Solves Complex Optimization Challenges

    150 shares
    Share 60 Tweet 38
  • Molecules in Focus: Capturing the Timeless Dance of Particles

    142 shares
    Share 57 Tweet 36
  • New Drug Formulation Transforms Intravenous Treatments into Rapid Injections

    115 shares
    Share 46 Tweet 29
  • First Confirmed Human Mpox Clade Ib Case China

    54 shares
    Share 22 Tweet 14

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Recent News

Sexual Dimorphism in UGT Deficiency: New Insights Revealed

Revolutionary Sandwich Composite Enhances Building Load Capacity

Dual-Target Fusion Protein Enhances Antiangiogenic Tumor Effects

  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.