There are many challenges to overcome in order to properly understand both the exposure to, and effects of, endocrine disruptors (EDs). This is particularly true with respect to fetal life where ED exposures are a major issue requiring toxicokinetic studies of materno-fetal exchange and identification of pathophysiological consequences. The sheep, a large, monotocous, species, is very suitable for in utero fetal catheterization allowing a modelling approach predictive of human fetal exposure. Predicting adverse effects of EDs on human health is frequently impeded by the wide interspecies differences in the regulation of endocrine functions and their effects on biological processes. Because of its similarity to humans as regards gestational and thyroid physiologies and brain ontogeny, the sheep constitutes a highly appropriate model to move one step further on thyroid disruptor hazard assessment. As a grazing animal, the sheep has also proven to be useful in the evaluation of the consequences of chronic environmental exposure to "real-life" complex mixtures at different stages of the reproductive life cycle.

中文翻译：

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更好地了解内分泌干扰物对健康的影响：绵羊模型中与人类相关的案例研究。

为了正确了解内分泌干扰物（ED）的暴露和作用，有许多挑战需要克服。对于胎儿生命尤其如此，因为ED暴露是一个主要问题，需要对母胎交换进行毒代动力学研究并确定病理生理后果。绵羊是一个巨大的单胎种，非常适合在子宫内进行胎儿导管插入术，从而可以采用预测人类胎儿暴露的建模方法。物种间内分泌功能调节及其对生物过程的影响之间的广泛差异常常会阻碍对EDs对人类健康的不良影响进行预测。由于它在妊娠和甲状腺生理以及脑发育方面与人类相似，绵羊是一个非常合适的模型，可以在甲状腺破坏者危险性评估中进一步向前迈进。作为放牧动物，绵羊还被证明可用于评估生殖生命周期不同阶段长期环境暴露于“现实”复杂混合物的后果。