Study Tests Supplement Against BPA Effects on Rodent Sperm

A study conducted at Osaka Metropolitan University examined whether a dietary supplement could reduce certain effects of Bisphenol A exposure on rodent sperm. BPA is an industrial chemical used since the 1950s in plastic food containers and metal can linings.

Researchers exposed rodents to BPA for up to eight weeks. They recorded increased free-radical production within one week and declines in sperm speed and head-movement measures by eight weeks. The team then administered FK-23, a heat-killed preparation of Enterococcus faecalis bacteria, to some of the exposed animals.

Sperm movement improved and signs of oxidative stress in reproductive tissue decreased compared with animals that received BPA alone.

BPA can migrate from packaging into food.

U.S. government surveys estimate detectable levels in more than 90 percent of Americans. The Food and Drug Administration prohibits BPA in baby bottles and sippy cups but permits it in other food-contact materials. The European Union bans BPA from food containers. The FDA states current evidence shows the amounts that leach from permitted products are not considered harmful.

The findings are limited to rodents.

Visiting Professor Yukiko Minamiyama of Osaka Metropolitan University’s Graduate School of Medicine said further research is required to determine whether the same effects occur in humans. Minamiyama added that confirmation in people could support use of the supplement for reproductive health. com.