Going by the somewhat startling findings of a new study, conducted by the biologists at the University of California-Berkeley, exposure to herbicide ‘Atrazine’ – which is a common man-made chemical found in US waters – can chemically “castrate” male frogs; turning some of them into females.

Noting that the pesticide, widely used on corn fields, probably impedes the functioning of endocrine hormones, like estrogen and testosterone; the researchers said that long-term exposure to low levels of atrazine - 2.5 parts in a billion of water – were found to have emasculated nearly 75 percent of laboratory frogs.

Of these castrated frogs, at least 10 percent turned into functional females who mated with males unexposed to atrazine, and produced viable eggs; while the remaining 90 percent showed fall in libido, lower sperm count and decreased fertility.

Drawing attention to the potential health effects of the widely-used atrazine weed killer, the study - published online in the Monday edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences – raises concerns about the Environmental Protection Agency’s 2006 decision of re-approving the use of atrazine.

Saying that atrazine is a chemical “that causes hormone havoc,” lead researcher Tyrone B. Hayes, a University of Berkeley biologist and herpetologist, said: “You need to look at things that are affecting wildlife, and realize that, biologically, we're not that different.”