Endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs), such as butylparaben (BP), which are used as preservatives in food and cosmetics, have been shown to negatively affect male reproductive health. Organs under the control of hormones such as androgens and estrogens, such as the prostate, are vulnerable to EDC stimulation. It is well known that BP can cause hormonal imbalances in the prostate and lead to various prostate diseases. However, studies on the long-term exposure of low-dose BP, which is common in daily life, are lacking, and existing studies rely heavily on in vitro tests to assess the risk of EDCs. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the long-term exposure effects of low-dose BP using a prostate organoid model that more closely resembles the target organ. When prostate organoids were treated with BP for a long period, hormonal imbalance was confirmed through differences in the expression of hormone receptors. In addition, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production was confirmed by DCFDA staining, and the protective effect of prostate organoids against stimulation was confirmed by increased protein levels of antioxidant factors. Through transcriptome analysis, we confirmed the occurrence of reproductive toxicity caused by BP. The long-term treatment of prostate organoids with BP causes hormonal imbalance and increased ROS exhibits reproductive toxicity and exerts a protective mechanism against BP through the expression of antioxidant factors. Our results highlight the potential of prostrate organoids as an alternative to animal experimental model and the need for further research on the effects of low EDC concentrations on male reproductive function.

中文翻译：

---

低浓度对羟基苯甲酸丁酯长期治疗对前列腺类器官的影响


内分泌干扰化合物 （EDC），例如在食品和化妆品中用作防腐剂的对羟基苯甲酸丁酯 （BP），已被证明会对男性生殖健康产生负面影响。受激素（如雄激素和雌激素）控制的器官（如前列腺）容易受到 EDC 刺激。众所周知，BP 会导致前列腺荷尔蒙失衡并导致各种前列腺疾病。然而，缺乏关于日常生活中常见的低剂量血压长期暴露的研究，现有研究严重依赖体外试验来评估 EDC 的风险。因此，在这项研究中，我们使用更接近靶器官的前列腺类器官模型研究了低剂量血压的长期暴露影响。当前列腺类器官长期用 BP 治疗时，通过激素受体表达的差异证实了荷尔蒙失衡。此外，活性氧 （ROS） 的产生通过 DCFDA 染色得到证实，前列腺类器官对刺激的保护作用通过抗氧化因子的蛋白质水平增加得到证实。通过转录组分析，我们证实了 BP 引起的生殖毒性的发生。用 BP 长期处理前列腺类器官会导致荷尔蒙失衡和 ROS 增加，表现出生殖毒性，并通过抗氧化因子的表达发挥对 BP 的保护机制。我们的结果强调了匍匐类器官作为动物实验模型替代品的潜力，以及需要进一步研究低 EDC 浓度对男性生殖功能的影响。