[Male reproductive toxicity of bisphenol A].

The reproductive toxicity of environmental endocrine disruptors has attracted substantial attention from researchers in recent years. Bisphenol A (BPA) is among the most prominent environmental estrogens worldwide, demonstrated to be related with the impairment of male reproductive function as well as other health problems, such as diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer. BPA acts primarily by mimicking antiandrogenic and estrogenic effects, disturbing the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis and modulating gene expressions and enzyme activities in the hormone biosynthesis affecting steroids or its receptors. BPA is also involved in DNA methylation and the effects of epigenetics, resulting in dyszoospermia, oligoasthenoteratospermia/azoospermia and/or infertility in males. This review addresses the effects of BPA on male reproductive function, focusing on the mechanisms of its toxicity on spermatogenesis, semen quality, and the reproductive system.