THE INTEGRATION OF HORMONAL AND CENTRAL SIGNALS AND THE IMPACTS OF ENDOCRINE DISRUPTING COMPOUNDS

The impacts of chemicals that can mimic the actions of estrogens on physiological systems like energy balance (weight gain, food intake, glucose, etc.), and thereby contribute to the obesity epidemic in both juvenile and adult populations, are of increasing interest to the scientific community, regulatory organizations and the general population. The research outlined in the project will determine the underlying cellular mechanisms behind these effects using unique transgenic strains of mice exposed both during development and in adulthood to environmental estrogens delivered to humans through food production, storage and distribution. Because many of these environmental estrogens are found in food containers and used in food production, the data from this research project may inform governmental decision-making in regards to the safety of food both at the state and federal level.