Abstract.To evaluate the effects of bisphenol A (BPA), a candidate endocrine disruptor (ED), on embryonic development, we examined the mRNA expression levels of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR; which binds with many EDs and plays crucial roles in their metabolism) and related factors [aryl hydrocarbon receptor repressor (AhRR) and AhR nuclear translocator (Arnt)], xenobiotic metabolizing enzymes [XMEs; cytochrome P450 1A1 (CYP1A1) and UDP-glucuronosyltransferase, and the glutathione S-transferase Ya subunit (GST)], in murine embryos exposed in utero to BPA (0.02, 2, 200, and 20,000 µg/kg/day) and 17β-estradiol (E2; 5 µg/kg/day, used as a positive control) at 6.5-13.5 or 6.5-17.5 days post coitum (dpc) using the quantitative real-time reverse transcriptionpolymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method. Protein levels of CYP1A1 and GST in embryonic livers were estimated by Western immunoblotting. Exposure in utero to BPA [0.02 (1/100 dose of environmental exposure), 2, 200, and 20,000 µg/kg/day] increased AhR mRNA expression in the cerebra, cerebella, and gonads (testes and ovaries) of male and female mid-and late-developmental stage (14.5-and 18.5-dpc, respectively) embryos. BPA dose-independently up-regulated the expression of AhRR and Arnt in mid-and late-stage embryos. BPA had no remarkable effect on the mRNA levels of XMEs in mid-stage embryos, but dose-dependently up-regulated the expression in late-stage embryos. Moreover, the protein levels of these enzymes in the livers of late-stage embryos were increased. The present findings revealed that exposure to BPA in utero disrupts the expression of AhR and related factors and of xenobiotic metabolizing enzymes, and that mid-stage embryos, in the organogenic stage, are sensitive to BPA. Key words: Aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), AhR relating factor, Bisphenol A (BPA), Murine embryo, Xenobiotic metabolizing enzymes (XMEs) (J. Reprod. Dev. 51: [593][594][595][596][597][598][599][600][601][602][603][604][605] 2005) isphenol A [BPA; 2,2-bis (4-hydroxyphenyl) propane], which is composed of two benzene rings and in conformation resembles a synthetic estrogen, diethylstilbestrol (DES), is a common plasticizer for polycarbonate and epoxy resins and a candidate environmental endocrine disruptor (ED) [1,2]. BPA has toxicological effects on the reproductive, immunological, and nervous systems in mammals, binds with estrogen receptor-α (ERα; NR3A1) and ER-β (NR3A2), and induces estrogenic activity [3][4][5][6]. BPA affects the expression levels of ERs and ER-like nuclear receptor mRNAs in the rat uterus [6], but the mechanism of its actions has yet