Bisphenol A and Its Bioremediation strategies—A Comprehensive Review
摘要
Bisphenol A (BPA)Bisphenol A (BPA) possesses both estrogenic endocrine disruptingEstrogenic endocrine disrupting and cancerous tumor promoting properties in reproductive organs. Exposure especially in early life, leads to developmental plasticity defects. Exposure to even low doses, that below the oral reference dose (RfD)Oral Reference Dose (RfD) established by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may lead to such defects. BPA affects both males and females. Most susceptible periods include pre-puberty, childhood, and pregnancy. It is so widely used in products that we use daily i.e., polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins, that basal levels of exposure are unavoidable. These effects have been seen in humans, animal models and wildlife setups. This unavoidable risk prompted the search for safer, affordable replacements for BPA. However, this led to the establishment of products being marketed as “BPA free,” although they contained other Bisphenols, namely Bisphenol S (BPS)Bisphenol S (BPS) and Bisphenol F (BPF)Bisphenol F (BPF). Though these were thought to be safer substitutes in the beginning, they were experimentally shown to produce similar estrogenic effects later. They too are capable of exerting estradiol like effects such as cell proliferation, differentiation, and death. Additionally, they may alter organ weight, reproductive end points and enzyme activity. Other BPA replacements as well, have all been proven to pose health hazards, either in the form of endocrine disruption or carcinogenesisCarcinogenesis. This chapter looks into the chemical structure of BPA, its molecular mechanisms of action and its effect on human health while delving deep into the modes of bioaccumulationBioaccumulation, detection, recovery and bioremediationBioremediation.