U.S. researchers link a chemical used in plastics -- bisphenol A -- to disrupted hormone production in mice.

The study in mice found 48 hours of exposure to the chemical slowed the growth of a healthy, mature follicle -- a group of cells within the ovary where the egg matures.

"These are the only follicles that are capable of ovulating and so if they don't grow properly they're not going to ovulate and there could be fertility issues," study co-leader Jodi Flaws of the University of Illinois in Champaign, Ill., said in a statement.

"These follicles also make sex steroid hormones and so if they don't grow properly you're not going to get proper amounts of these hormones." Flaws said. "Such hormones are essential for reproduction, but they're also required for healthy bones, a healthy heart and a healthy mood."

The researchers described the drop in production of steroid hormones -- progesterone, testosterone and estradiol -- as quite dramatic. After 120 hours of exposure bisphenol A, mouse follicle cells produced about 85 percent less estradiol, 97 percent less progesterone and 95 percent less testosterone. Lower doses of the chemical had a less dramatic -- but still considerable -- dampening effect, the study said.