PURPOSE OF REVIEW A time-related negative trend in male reproductive function has been suggested. It has been hypothesized that this is due to exposure to chemicals interfering with the action of sex hormones. Also a negative effect of phytoestrogens on male fertility has been postulated. This review aimed to review the epidemiological evidence of deteriorating male reproductive function and su...

Within the past several years, the relation between diet and health has been accepted by the mainstream nutrition community and in this connection interest in the physiological role of bioactive compounds present in plants has dramatically increased over the last decade. The phytoestrogens are bioactive molecules present as nutritional constituents of widely consumed vegetables. Their name deri...

Phytoestrogens and other plant-derived compounds and extracts have been developed for the treatment of menopause-related complaints and disorders, e.g. hot flushes and osteoporosis. Since estrogens have been discussed to enhance the risk for hormone-sensitive cancers, research activities try to find alternatives. Phytoestrogens like genistein and resveratrol as well as other plant-derived compo...

Previously, we demonstrated that intact female rats fed a standard rodent diet containing soybean products exhibit essentially no adverse left ventricular (LV) remodeling in response to aortocaval fistula-induced chronic volume overload. We hypothesized that phytoestrogenic compounds in the diet contributed to the female cardioprotection. To test this hypothesis, four groups of female rats were...

To search for new targets of anticancer therapies using phytoestrogens we performed comparative metabolic profiling of the breast cancer cell line MCF-7 and the non-tumorigenic breast cell line MCF-12A. Application of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) revealed significant differences in the metabolic levels after exposure with 17ß-estradiol, genistein or a composition of phytoestroge...

Although the majority of ecological and experimental studies have suggested a potential role of phytoestrogens in breast cancer prevention, findings from epidemiological studies have been inconsistent. Part of the inconsistencies may be attributable to the difficulty in measuring intake levels of phytoestrogens. Overnight urine samples from 250 incident breast cancer cases and their individuall...

Impressive data from the many studies on cultured bone cells and rat models of postmenopausal osteoporosis support a significant bone-sparing effect of the soy isoflavones genistein and daidzein. Translating this research to the clinic has been more challenging, and thus far only a few clinical studies have attempted to tease out the influence of phytoestrogens on bone from the many other compo...

Phytoestrogens are polyphenol compounds which have similar structure to 17β-estradiol (E2), a kind of main estrogen in women. Thus, phytoestrogens may affect the reproductive and endocrine systems, leading to the development of estrogen-related cancers. The effect of genistein (Gen), one of the most studied phytoestrogens, on human cervical cancer cells (HeLa) was investigated in this study. It...

Phytoestrogens are plant-derived compounds with oestrogenic activity. They are common in both human and animal diets, particularly through soy-based foods. This study assessed whether exposure of adult male rats to a high phytoestrogen diet for 3-25 days affected their fertility, and assessed possible mechanisms through which phytoestrogens may disrupt fertility. Adult males, fed a high phytoes...

Proper regulation of uterine contractility, both spontaneous and oxytocin (OT)-amplified, is essential for successful fertilization and maintenance of gestation. Previously, we showed that polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), regarded as environmental pollutants, contributed to the increase in contractions of cyclic bovine uterus. In this paper, we hypothesized that phytoestrogens, plant-derived c...