What threat this poses for humans and wildlife will need to be studied further. But the presence of these chemicals, even in trace amounts, was still shocking when found in some of the most remote lakes in northeastern Minnesota.

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Then, they study an egg yolk protein found in the perch’s’ livers, called vitellogenin, which may provide evidence of endocrine disruption in the state’s aquatic species.

Over the past few years, studies of Minnesota’s waters have found a variety of unregulated chemicals — such as pharmaceuticals, fragrances, fire retardants, detergents and insecticides — which are widespread in the state’s lakes and rivers.

When male fish are exposed to EACs, they can start to develop female attributes, such as increased vitellogenin concentrations; in more extreme instances, male fish have also been found to produce eggs in their testes.

And while these chemicals have been linked to health problems such as infertility and different types of cancer, “it’s too soon to say whether feminized fish are indicative of health effects for humans too,” an article by National Geographic said.

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