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The association between follicle stimulating hormone and glutathione peroxidase activity is dependent on abdominal obesity in postmenopausal women

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Abstract

Purpose

Menopause is frequently associated with an increase in visceral fat, thus modifying redox status by promoting oxidative damage and decreasing antioxidant defense systems. It is known that at higher concentrations estradiol has some antioxidant properties, while its decline in postmenopause is associated with pro-oxidant effects. However, the role of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) in antioxidant defense in postmenopausal women is still not well elucidated. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the potential complex association between visceral obesity, FSH and enzymatic antioxidant defense as measured by glutathione peroxidase (GPx) in postmenopausal women.

Methods

A total of 150 postmenopausal women (mean age 56.6 ± 4.8 years), among them 50 normal weight and 100 overweight/obese, were included. GPx activity, FSH, luteinizing hormone, estradiol, total testosterone, cardiometabolic and anthropometric parameters, were determined.

Results

With increasing tertiles of serum FSH levels, significant increase in GPx activity (P = 0.005) was found. Also, the highest number of overweight/obese subjects were in the group with the lowest FSH values (χ 2 = 14.9, P < 0.001). After multiple linear regression analysis, the relationship between GPx and FSH disappeared, whereas only higher waist circumference (β = −0.218, P = 0.045) predicted lower FSH level (adjusted R 2 = 0.227).

Conclusion

Higher GPx activity is associated with higher FSH level, but abdominal obesity may be the underlying determinant of this relationship.

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Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported in part by a grant from the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Republic of Serbia (Project No. OI 175035-J. Kotur-Stevuljevic).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Primary Health Care Center, Trg Nikole Kovacevica 6, 81000, Podgorica, Montenegro

    Aleksandra Klisic & Nebojsa Kavaric

  2. Department for Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia

    Jelena Kotur-Stevuljevic

  3. Department for Pathophysiology and Laboratory Medicine, Medical Faculty, University of Montenegro, Podgorica, Montenegro

    Milica Martinovic

  4. Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Medical and Clinical Biochemistry, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia

    Marija Matic

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  1. Aleksandra Klisic
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Correspondence to Aleksandra Klisic.

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Ethical approval

The study protocol was approved by the Ethical Committee of Primary Health Care Center in Podgorica, Montenegro and the research was carried out in compliance with the Declaration of Helsinki.

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All the participants provided written informed consent.

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Klisic, A., Kotur-Stevuljevic, J., Kavaric, N. et al. The association between follicle stimulating hormone and glutathione peroxidase activity is dependent on abdominal obesity in postmenopausal women. Eat Weight Disord 23, 133–141 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-016-0325-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-016-0325-1

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