High dose statins can increase osteoporosis risk finds Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases study

A higher dose of statins, the cholesterol-lowering drug, could increase the risk of osteoporosis,  a recent has found. However, at low doses statins provide protection against bone resorption.
According to the study, whether statins decrease or increase the risk of osteoporosis is dependent on their dosage. At low doses, statins provide protection against bone resorption. However, the higher the dosage of statins greater is the risk of osteoporosis. In short, osteoporosis is underrepresented in low-dose and over-represented in high-dose statin treatment. Findings are based on an analysis of millions of patient data.

Osteoporosis is one of the most commonly occurring metabolic bone disorders. It is characterised by decreased bone mineral density (BMD) in which bones become weak and brittle. This increases the bone fragility making it susceptible to fracture.

Statins are cholesterol-lowering drugs that help the heart and brain by preventing artery plaques- buildups of cholesterol, calcium and other substances in blood vessels-- from blocking blood flow and causing a heart attack or stroke. They are among the most prescribed drugs worldwide.

Whether HMG-CoA-reductase inhibition, the main mechanism of statins, plays a role in the pathogenesis of osteoporosis, is not entirely known so far. Researchers conducted the study to investigate the relationship of different kinds and dosages of statins with osteoporosis, hypothesising that the inhibition of the synthesis of cholesterol could influence sex-hormones and therefore the diagnosis of osteoporosis.

Statins inhibit the synthesis of cholesterol from the liver. This lowers blood cholesterol. However, cholesterol is crucially important for many processes in the body. Among other things, it is a basic building block for the production of sex hormones such as estradiol and testosterone.

For the investigation, the researchers used Big Data. They obtained access to the health data of more than 7.9 million Australians between 2006-2007. From this big data set the patients who regularly took statins for at least one year were filtered out. The researchers also calculated the daily dosage of statins and formed different dosage groups. In a further step, the interdisciplinary team filtered out osteoporosis diagnoses.

Key findings of the study include-
* statin treatment was associated with an over-representation of diagnosed osteoporosis compared with controls.
* there was a highly non-trivial dependence of statin dosage with the ORs of osteoporosis.
* Osteoporosis was underrepresented in low-dose statin treatment ) 0-10mg per day) including lovastatin, pravastatin, simvasatin and rosuvastatin.

The exceeding of the 40 mg threshold for simvastatin and the exceeding of a 20 mg threshold for atorastatin and for rosuvastatin was related to an over-representation of osteoporosis.

We know that low concentrations of sex hormones- especially the drop in estrogen levels during menopause-- are the main cause for the increase of osteoporosis in women, explains a Dr.  There is a similar relationship between bone density and testosterone. We were interested in whether the inhibition of cholesterol production by statins has an effect on bone formation and whether there could be a dose-response relationship.

In the lower dose groups, there were fewer osteoporosis cases than expected, points out the Dr. At doses up to 10mg of the statins lovastatin, pravastatin, simvastatin or rosuvastatin, the scientists found fewer osteoporosis diagnoses compared to patients without statin therapy. With doses of 20 mg, and more, however,  this seems to turn. We found more osteoporosis cases in patients treated with simvastatin, atorvastatin and rosuvastatin than expected, explains the Dr. The higher the dosage, the stronger the effect.

In earlier, joint studies we saw how helpful large data sets can be to examine open medical questions, says the leader of the study. The combination of medical expertise with our knowledge in big data analysis makes completely new insights possible. According to the researcher, the newly discovered correlation between statin therapy and osteoporosis risk should now be investigated in clinical studies.

With such results, we're coming closer to truly personalised and individualised medicine, maintains the Dr. We can now advise high-risk osteoporosis patients undergoing statin therapy to have their bone metabolism regularly monitored.

We propose that monitoring high-risk patients, that is postmenopausal female patients under high-dosage statin therapy, might be useful in order to offer individual therapy to prevent or treat osteoporosis. This, larger and prospective studies with a focus on dosages of statins should be conducted in order to clarify the relationship with osteoporosis, concluded the authors.
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Decoded: Why women get heart attacks later than men

Although women develop coronary artery disease (CAD) almost 10 years later than men as scientists have attributed this decade-long delay to the protective effects of sex hormones, the heart disease finally catches up with women owing to the presence of "fat-absorbing" XX hormones.

There is a lot of evidence that hormones like estrogen and progesterone protect the heart, but scientists had little data on the influence of the genetic component -- the X chromosome -- on the heart.

New research at the University of Kentucky has confirmed that the presence of XX sex chromosomes increases the amount of fat circulating in the blood, which leads to narrowing of the arteries and ultimately a higher risk of heart attacks and coronary artery disease.

The team looked at lipids absorbed from the diet and made in the liver.

"We looked at how our X sex chromosomes were influencing the levels of lipids in the blood and in the arteries," said a researcher.

What they found is that an XX sex chromosome combination promotes efficient use of fat.

Women need fat to bear and feed babies, the Dr. explained.

"We`re set up, potentially through our XX sex chromosomes, so that we can effectively absorb that lipid from the diet and put it into our fat cells and maybe even make it in the liver."

The team studied chromosome effects in mice, and for this most recent discovery, they were able to zero in on XX Chromosomes by removing hormones.

According to a post-doctoral scholar and the paper`s first author, if the levels of circulating lipids transported by the blood are too high, they will start to accumulate in and on the artery wall, leading to plaque buildup.

These plaques harden and narrow the artery, reducing blood flow to the vital organs.

Everything is fine until women hit menopause and the protective effects of hormones disappear, leaving women with, what the Dr. calls, "that XX thrifty, fat absorbing kind of genotype."

The team is looking at genes that are changed in the liver and in the intestine to find novel targets for drug development. If they can find target genes that influence atherosclerosis, scientists can then explore the effects of existing drugs or develop new ones.

"We don`t know if our findings are due to the presence of two X chromosomes or due to the absence of the Y chromosome," said the researcher.

These findings may also drive choice of diet for post-menopausal women.

"For example, if they`re very effective fat absorbers, obviously, once they get post-menopausal, they need to be careful about the fat content," added the Dr.

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Women more susceptible than men to asthma

Women are twice as likely as men to have asthma, and this gender difference may be caused by the effects of sex hormones on lung cells, a study has found.

Researchers found that testosterone hindered an immune cell linked to asthma symptoms, such as inflammation and mucus production in the lungs.

"When we started this study, we really thought that ovarian hormones would increase inflammation, more so than testosterone making it better," said a researcher.

"I was surprised to see that testosterone was more important in reducing inflammation," said a senior author of the study.

Prior studies have found that, before puberty, boys have about 1.5 times higher rate of asthma than girls. That trend reverses after puberty, when women are twice likely to have asthma as men, researchers said.

This pattern continues until women hit menopause, and then the asthma rates in women start to  decline. 

Increased asthma symptoms are regulated by many different factors, including exposure to allergens and viral infections, and the researchers suspected that sex hormones might also be involved.

Researchers looked at human and mouse cells to further study the trend in gender differences that they had observed.

They focused on lung cells called Group 2 innate lymphoid cells, or ILC2 cells. These cells make cytokines, proteins that cause inflammation and mucus production in the lungs, which makes it harder to breathe.

The researchers collected blood from people with and without asthma and found that those with asthma had more ILC2 cells than those without. Of that group, asthmatic women had more ILC2 cells than asthmatic men.

ILC2 cells are also found in the lungs of mice, but they are rare. They make up only about 10,000 of the 10 million cells in a mouse lung, researchers said.
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Women are twice as likely as men to have asthma, and this gender difference may be caused by the effects of sex hormones on lung cells, a study has found.

Researchers found that testosterone hindered an immune cell linked to asthma symptoms, such as inflammation and mucus production in the lungs.

Read more at:
//economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/61849958.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Women are twice as likely as men to have asthma, and this gender difference may be caused by the effects of sex hormones on lung cells, a study has found.

Researchers found that testosterone hindered an immune cell linked to asthma symptoms, such as inflammation and mucus production in the lungs.

"When we started this study, we really thought that ovarian hormones would increase inflammation, more so than testosterone making it better," said Dawn Newcomb, from the Vand ..

Read more at:
//economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/61849958.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

What Is Hypogonadism?

When the reproductive glands produce very less or no hormones like oestrogen or testosterone, then it is known as hypogonadism. These hormones are important for controlling secondary sex characteristics like development of breasts in women and testes in men and growth in pubic hair. Sex hormones are also required for the roles they play in menstrual cycle in women and sperm production in men.
Hypogonadism is curable with the right medicines.
Types of Hypogonadism
1. Primary hypogonadism: In this type, there are not enough sex hormones in your body because of a problem in your gonads (testis or ovary). In primary hypogonadism, the gonads do receive the message from the brain to produce sex hormones but cannot produce them, due to some reasons.
2. Central/Secondary hypogonadism: In this type, the problem lies in the brain. The pituitary gland and hypothalamus located in the brain do not work properly.
What causes Hypogonadism
The causes of hypogonadism can be classified according to their types.
In primary hypogonadism, the causes are:
1. Genetic disorders (for example, Turner syndrome in women and Klinefelter syndrome in men)
2. Autoimmune disorders
3. Infection
4. Kidney and Liver diseases
5. Radiation
6. Surgery
In central hypogonadism, the causes are:
1. Anorexia nervosa
2. Tumours
3. Bleeding in the pituitary area
4. Trauma
5. Taking certain medicines (for example, glucocorticoids and opiates)
6. Anabolic steroids (alternatives to human testosterone)
7. Surgery
8. Genetic problems (example: Kallmann syndrome- unable to start or complete puberty)
9. Radiation
10. Infections
11. Hemochromatosis (excessive iron)
12. Nutritional deficiencies
Symptoms associated with Hypogonadism
Symptoms of hypogonadism in females include
1. Lack of menstruation
2. Changes in mood and energy
3. Body hair loss
4. Lack of sex drive
5. Milky discharge from breasts
Symptoms of male hypogonadism include
1. Body hair loss
2. Loss in muscles
3. Abnormal growth in breasts
4. Low libido
5. Erectile dysfunction
6.Fatigue

Please do consult your gynecologist or your physician if you've any specific problem.  

 

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A gene’s dysfunction may be behind premenstrual mood disorder

A premenstrual mood disorder that affects 2 to 5% of women of reproductive age may be the result of a dysregulation in certain gene activity.


Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) with symptoms such as irritability, sadness, and anxiety in the days leading up to the menstrual period, is severe than premenstrual syndrome (PMS) which is much more common.

The findings showed that women with PMDD are more sensitive to the effects of sex hormones premenstrual syndrome and progesterone, due to a molecular mechanism in their genes.

The study proves “that PMDD is a disorder of cellular response to estrogen and progesterone”, said Peter Schmidt from the NIH’s National Institute of Mental Health, Behavioral Endocrinology Branch. 

The researchers revealed that turning off estrogen and progesterone eliminated PMDD symptoms, while re-introducing the hormones triggered the re-emergence of symptoms.
This confirmed that they had a biologically-based behavioural sensitivity to the hormones that might be reflected in molecular differences detectable in their cells.

“This is a big moment for women’s health, because it establishes that women with PMDD have an intrinsic difference in their molecular apparatus for response to sex hormones -- not just emotional behaviours they should be able to voluntarily control,” added David Goldman from the NIH’s National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

The study may also help improve treatment of such prevalent reproductive endocrine-related mood disorders.

For the study, published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, the researchers studied how gene expression was controlled in white-blood cells from women with PMDD and controls. 

They found a complex of genes that acts differently in women with the disorder compared to women without it.

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Exercise scores over diet in lowering cancer risk

Are you on a strict diet to reduce body fat that may also help lower breast cancer risk? Better take up exercise as researchers have found that physical activity offers additional benefit, beyond the effect of weight loss in reducing cancer risk.

Both exercising and eating better are thought to reduce women's risk of breast cancer by decreasing body fat and levels of the sex hormones related to breast cancer.

"Exercise has a stronger effect on breast cancers fuelled by hormones, compared to dieting, and also offers additional benefits such as preserving lean body mass," said Anne Maria May from University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands.

"Exercise is the preferred weight loss strategy to decrease breast cancer risk," May added.

The study involved about 240 overweight women, aged 50 to 69, and they were set a goal to lose five to six kgs over 16 weeks.

By the end of the study, women in both the exercising and dieting groups achieved their weight-loss goals, but the exercising participants preserved their lean body mass (which includes muscles and bones), and reduced more of their body fat, compared with the dieting participants.

Those who exercised also reduced their levels of estrogen (a potential risk factor for breast cancer) more than dieting participants did and the exercising women showed decreases in all types of estrogen in the body, whereas women in the diet group showed a decrease in only one type of estrogen. 

 

 

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