Exposure to Persistent Organic Pollutants Reduces Testosterone Concentrations and Affects Sperm Viability and Morphology during the Mating Peak Period in a Controlled Experiment on Farmed Arctic Foxes (Vulpes lagopus)

• Published in: Environmental Science & Technology
• Main Authors: Sonne, Christian, Torjesen, Peter A., Fuglei, Eva, Muir, Derek C. G., Jenssen, Bjorn Munro, Jorgensen, Even H., Dietz, Rune, Ahlstrom, Oystein
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2017
• Subjects: BEARS URSUS-MARITIMUS; DOGS CANIS-FAMILIARIS; GREENLAND POLAR BEARS; POLYCHLORINATED-BIPHENYLS; ALOPEX-LAGOPUS; THYROID-HORMONES; VITAMIN-A; ORGANOHALOGEN CONTAMINANTS; BLOOD-PLASMA; TISSUE; Arctic; Greenland; Alopex lagopus; minke whale; Ursus maritimus; Vulpes lagopus
• Online Access: https://pure.au.dk/portal/en/publications/a15858c4-fd7c-490c-9f81-f052722b17ee; https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.7b00289

We investigated testosterone production and semen parameters in farmed Arctic foxes by dietary exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) for 22 months. Eight male foxes were given a diet of POP-contaminated minke whale blubber, whereas their eight male siblings were fed a control diet containing pig fat as the main fat source. The minke whale based feed contained a Sigma POPs concentration of 802 ng/g ww, whereas the pig based feed contained Sigma POPs of 24 ng/g ww. At the end of the experiment, Sigma POP concentrations in adipose tissue were 8856 +/- 2535 ng/g ww in the exposed foxes and 1264 539 ng/g ww in the control foxes. The exposed group had 45-64% significantly lower testosterone concentrations during their peak mating season compared to the controls (p