- Email: [email protected]
Re: An Aromatase Polymorphism Modulates the Relationship Between Weight and Estradiol Levels in Obese Men
MALE INFERTILITY
1839
Patient(s): Seven hundred ninety-four men. Intervention(s): None. Main Outcome Measure(s): In semen samples, sperm quality (volume, density, motility, morphology, viability, hypoosmotic swell test, and nuclear maturity) and levels of neutral alpha-glucosidase, fructose, citric acid and T. Result(s): Multivariate analysis showed a negative association between BMI and motility, rapid motility and neutral alpha-glucosidase levels, and a positive association between BMI and seminal fructose levels. No associations were found among BMI and sperm concentration, the other parameters evaluated, or seminal T levels. Conclusion(s): Results found in our study support a deleterious effect of obesity on seminal quality, probably by alterations in the function of the epididymis (I.e., in epididymal maturation). Editorial Comment: These investigators examined the relationship between obesity and bulk semen analysis, and observed that sperm motility degraded with increasing body mass but sperm concentration seemingly did not. Interestingly seminal neutral alphaglucosidase, an epididymal enzyme, markedly diminished with increasing body mass. This result suggests that a negative effect of obesity on sperm motility may result from impairment of the epididymis. Craig Niederberger, M.D.
Re: An Aromatase Polymorphism Modulates the Relationship Between Weight and Estradiol Levels in Obese Men A. Hammoud, D. T. Carrell, A. W. Meikle, Y. Xin, S. C. Hunt, T. D. Adams and M. Gibson Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Department of Surgery/Division of Urology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah Fertil Steril 2010; 94: 1734 –1738.
Objective: To describe the influence of the TTTA aromatase polymorphism (TTTAn) on the relation between obesity and plasma estradiol (E2) in obese men. Design: A 2-year cohort study. Setting: Clinical research center. Patient(s): Severely obese men (31 who had had gastric bypass surgery and 118 controls). Intervention(s): Men were genotyped for the TTTAn CYP19A1 polymorphism. Anthropomorphic measures, plasma E2, and other hormonal levels were determined at baseline and 2-year follow-up. Main Outcomes Measure(s): Relationships between weight and changes in weight and plasma E2 were examined in relation to the TTTAn polymorphism. Result(s): The mean age was 46.5 ⫾ 10.82 years, and mean body mass index was 47.1 ⫾ 8.46 kg/m2. The most common repeats were 7 and 11. TTTAn number did not correlate with plasma E2 in the univariate analysis. When patients were stratified per weight group, the correlation between plasma E2 and weight was seen only among men with a higher TTTA repeat at baseline and 2 years. Similarly, only men with higher TTTA exhibited reduced E2 levels after weight loss. Conclusion(s): A higher TTTA repeat is associated with a strengthened relationship between obesity and E2. The well-established effect of increased weight on plasma E2 appears to be absent in men with low TTTA numbers. Editorial Comment: Obesity in men is generally associated with an increase in estradiol levels, which evidence suggests impairs reproductive function. These investigators observed that polymorphism in the gene encoding for the aromatase enzyme affects the correlation between body mass index and plasma estradiol, with the number of TTTA repeats associated with increased estradiol. As estradiol may be increased in nonobese men, the next step is to investigate the relationship between the number of TTTA repeats in the aromatase gene and estradiol in men with normal body mass. Craig Niederberger, M.D.
1839
Patient(s): Seven hundred ninety-four men. Intervention(s): None. Main Outcome Measure(s): In semen samples, sperm quality (volume, density, motility, morphology, viability, hypoosmotic swell test, and nuclear maturity) and levels of neutral alpha-glucosidase, fructose, citric acid and T. Result(s): Multivariate analysis showed a negative association between BMI and motility, rapid motility and neutral alpha-glucosidase levels, and a positive association between BMI and seminal fructose levels. No associations were found among BMI and sperm concentration, the other parameters evaluated, or seminal T levels. Conclusion(s): Results found in our study support a deleterious effect of obesity on seminal quality, probably by alterations in the function of the epididymis (I.e., in epididymal maturation). Editorial Comment: These investigators examined the relationship between obesity and bulk semen analysis, and observed that sperm motility degraded with increasing body mass but sperm concentration seemingly did not. Interestingly seminal neutral alphaglucosidase, an epididymal enzyme, markedly diminished with increasing body mass. This result suggests that a negative effect of obesity on sperm motility may result from impairment of the epididymis. Craig Niederberger, M.D.
Re: An Aromatase Polymorphism Modulates the Relationship Between Weight and Estradiol Levels in Obese Men A. Hammoud, D. T. Carrell, A. W. Meikle, Y. Xin, S. C. Hunt, T. D. Adams and M. Gibson Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Department of Surgery/Division of Urology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah Fertil Steril 2010; 94: 1734 –1738.
Objective: To describe the influence of the TTTA aromatase polymorphism (TTTAn) on the relation between obesity and plasma estradiol (E2) in obese men. Design: A 2-year cohort study. Setting: Clinical research center. Patient(s): Severely obese men (31 who had had gastric bypass surgery and 118 controls). Intervention(s): Men were genotyped for the TTTAn CYP19A1 polymorphism. Anthropomorphic measures, plasma E2, and other hormonal levels were determined at baseline and 2-year follow-up. Main Outcomes Measure(s): Relationships between weight and changes in weight and plasma E2 were examined in relation to the TTTAn polymorphism. Result(s): The mean age was 46.5 ⫾ 10.82 years, and mean body mass index was 47.1 ⫾ 8.46 kg/m2. The most common repeats were 7 and 11. TTTAn number did not correlate with plasma E2 in the univariate analysis. When patients were stratified per weight group, the correlation between plasma E2 and weight was seen only among men with a higher TTTA repeat at baseline and 2 years. Similarly, only men with higher TTTA exhibited reduced E2 levels after weight loss. Conclusion(s): A higher TTTA repeat is associated with a strengthened relationship between obesity and E2. The well-established effect of increased weight on plasma E2 appears to be absent in men with low TTTA numbers. Editorial Comment: Obesity in men is generally associated with an increase in estradiol levels, which evidence suggests impairs reproductive function. These investigators observed that polymorphism in the gene encoding for the aromatase enzyme affects the correlation between body mass index and plasma estradiol, with the number of TTTA repeats associated with increased estradiol. As estradiol may be increased in nonobese men, the next step is to investigate the relationship between the number of TTTA repeats in the aromatase gene and estradiol in men with normal body mass. Craig Niederberger, M.D.