A new episode of The Smart Human podcast has just gone live! Dr. Aly Cohen is joined by neuroendocrinologist Andrea Gore, PhD, to discuss how endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) affect the brain.
In this episode, they discuss:
How the brain controls reproductive hormones and communicates with the endocrine system.
How endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) interfere with brain-hormone communication.
What EDCs are and how they disrupt normal hormonal signaling. The endocrine system explained through a simple “lock-and-key” hormone model.
How EDCs can mimic or block natural hormones in the body.
How EDCs disrupt hormone production, regulation, and overall balance in the body.
The rise of synthetic chemicals after World War II and links to increasing endocrine and neurological disorders.
The accidental discovery that BPA leaching from plastic caused reproductive harm in laboratory mice.
Why endocrine disruption challenged the traditional idea that “the dose makes the poison.”
How chemicals like BPA can affect multiple hormone receptors at very low doses... and so much more!
About Dr. Andrea Gore
Dr. Andrea Gore is Professor and Vacek Chair in Pharmacology at the University of Texas at Austin. Her research team is investigating fundamental mechanisms of how environmental endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) perturb the developing brain; sex differences in EDC actions; and transgenerational epigenetic effects. Dr. Gore’s research has been funded continuously by the NIH, NSF, and foundations since 1992. She has published 4 books and over 200 scientific papers. She was Editor-in-Chief of Endocrinology from 2013-2017 and was lead author of the Endocrine Society’s two Scientific Statements on EDCs, and the Endocrine Society-IPEN Guides to EDCs, most recently in 2024. Dr. Gore is very active in advocacy for, mentorship of, and education of trainees.
