The Pesticide Called Atrazine Acts as an Endocrine...

The article reviewed in this summary is Hayes, T.B., Khoury, V., Narayan, A., Nazir, M., Park, A., Brown, T., Adame, L., Chan, E., Buchholz, D., Stueve, T., and Gallipeau, S. 2010. Atrazine induces complete feminization and chemical castration in male African clawed frogs (Xenopus laevis). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 107: 4612-4617. The authors have assigned key words described throughout this article including amphibian decline, endocrine disruption, pesticide and sex reversal. The larger or global context for the research conducted in this article is that the pesticide Atrazine is widely utilized across the entire world, contaminating water sources by mobilizing through rainfall, disrupting habitats and impacting†¦show more content†¦Spermatogenesis data was collected from five random testicular tubules as well as the largest tubule. DNA for sex determination was obtained from the prepared toe tips of the amphibians and aromatase samples were collected from the RNA removed from the gonads of atrazine induced females. The authors collected data on mating choice behavior from single and paired frogs of both male groups to ZW stock females placed in a pool together. Testosterone levels were obtained from the same paired and single males by taking centrifuged blood samples and extracting the plasma testosterone. Fertility data was collected by pairing controlled and atrazine exposed males with ZW stock females and gathering eggs and embryos from these matings. The data collected spans from hatching of the larvae until about two to three years after metamorphosis. For the morphometric measurements, statistical analyses were performed. The dilator larynges were examined by the proportion extended beyond the thiohyral in order to determine the significance of the length of the extension. The presence or absence of observable nuptial pads was analyzed, to determine it as a sex characteristic of males. Breeding glands were evaluated by considering the maximum area of the l argest gland which was then compared to the areas of other glands to observe the size differences between the control and atrazine treated males. Stages of spermatogenesis for the testis and tubules with and