Bisphenol A caused abnormal spermatogenesis of Eriocheir sinensis through es-ERR/es-KIF4A pathway with discussion of BPA substitutes.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a well-known environmental pollutant, particularly in aquatic systems. The hazards of BPA exist in the following aspects, such as endocrine interference, reproductive system impact, development problems and metabolic disorders, and so on. As an economically important aquatic crustacean, Eriocheir sinensis lives in a wide range of BPA contaminated water environments. The possible damage caused by BPA to E. sinensis, especially reproductive damage, has not been reported as yet. We carried out experiments on reproductive damage, the results indicated that different concentrations of BPA not only lead to a decrease of testes weight but also caused abnormal spermatogenesis. After low concentrations of BPA was added, low concentrations of BPA led to apoptosis as well as proliferation inhibition of spermatogenic cells through the esERR-esKIF4A pathway. In a substitute experiment, BPB and BPF were probably not suitable substitutes for BPA. All in all, we demonstrated that BPA was harmful to the spermatogenesis of E. sinensis at environmental concentrations, and stimulated oxidative stress which to cause apoptosis and proliferation inhibition through the esERR-esKIF4A pathway. While its substitutes BPB and BPF were unreliable.