Review of experimental male-mediated behavioral and neurochemical disorders.

Paternal exposures to exogenous agents have been reported to produce a variety of developmental defects in the offspring. In experimental animals, these effects include decreased litter size and weight, increased stillbirth and neonatal death, birth defects, tumors, and functional/behavioral abnormalities-some of these effects being transmitted to the second and third generations. This article reviews the exogenous agents that have reportedly caused behavioral or neurochemical alterations in offspring of experimental animals following paternal exposures, including advanced age, alcohols, cyclophosphamide, ethylene dibromide, lead, opiates, and a few miscellaneous chemicals. Based upon the consistency of effects in several of these agents in a variety of studies in experimental animals, the conclusion is that paternal exposures may contribute to the incidence of neurobehavioral disorders in humans.