The Problem

The Delaware-Maryland-Virginia (Delmarva) poultry industry alone produces nearly 1.6 billion pounds of poultry litter annually. Poultry litter—chicken manure mixed with bedding—has begun to replace costly synthetic fertilizers in the agriculture industry.

Runoff containing poultry litter associated hormones (PLAH) can contaminate ephemeral ponds and surface water near amphibian habitats and breeding sites. PLAH may contribute to amphibian gonadal deformations.

Research Question

To what extent do environmentally relevant concentrations of PLAH affect the sexual development of the African Clawed Frog?

What are the degradation intermediates of PLAH?