These data suggest that the AHR plays an important role in development of cells with cancer stem cell-like qualities and that environmental AHR ligands may exacerbate breast cancer by enhancing expression of these properties.
A new culture system that tests the role of chemical exposure on the developing mammary gland has found that bisphenol A (BPA) directly affects the mammary gland of mouse embryos. The study show that these changes to embryonic mammary tissue occur at a dose comparable to that of humans' environmental exposure to BPA.
