Some women may be genetically predisposed to smoking-related hot flashes
New study shows smokers with variants in specific genes at greater risk for hot flashes
2012-05-04
(Press-News.org) Women who smoke and carry specific variations in the genes that impact their metabolism are at higher risk of developing hot flashes in comparison with smokers who do not carry these gene variants, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (JCEM).
Previous studies have shown that smoking is associated with earlier onset of menopause, increased odds of hot flashes and risk of postmenopausal osteoporosis. The current study aimed to explore which smokers have the highest risk of hot flashes based on the presence of variants in specific genes involved in hormone metabolism as well as activation of toxins in tobacco smoke.
"Our report demonstrates the impact of smoking on hot flashes as a function of variants in genes involved in sex steroid metabolism in late reproductive-age women and suggests that certain smokers have increased susceptibility to hot flashes based on their genetic background," said Samantha Butts, MD MSCE, of the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the study's lead author. "Women who smoke and carry a particular gene variant may benefit from aggressive targeted approaches to smoking cessation, especially if they know that smoking is a significant contributor to their menopausal symptoms."
In this study, researchers examined 296 late reproductive-aged women who have been followed for the past eleven years in the Penn Ovarian Aging Study, a population based study of reproductive aging. Butts and colleagues took blood samples from study participants and evaluated their medical and reproductive history, menopausal symptoms and behaviors such as smoking and alcohol consumption. They found that women who smoked and carried single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in certain genes were at a significantly higher risk for developing hot flashes than smokers who did not carry these SNPs.
"The toxins in cigarette smoke that are believed to be associated with hot flashes are also present in many forms in the environment which means even non-smokers who have certain SNPs could be at risk for symptoms," said Butts. "Furthermore, it's possible that smoking behaviors in women carrying relevant SNPs could impact health risks well into menopause and could challenge reproductive success in young women aiming to become pregnant, making this an even broader public health consideration."
Other researchers working on the study include: Ellen W. Freeman, Mary D. Sammel, Kaila Queen, Hui Lin and Timothy Rebbeck of the University of Pennsylvania.
###
The article, "Joint Effects of Smoking and Gene Variants Involved in Sex Steroid Metabolism on Hot Flashes in Late Reproductive-Age Women," appears in the June 2012 issue of JCEM.
Founded in 1916, The Endocrine Society is the world's oldest, largest and most active organization devoted to research on hormones and the clinical practice of endocrinology. Today, The Endocrine Society's membership consists of over 15,000 scientists, physicians, educators, nurses and students in more than 100 countries. Society members represent all basic, applied and clinical interests in endocrinology. The Endocrine Society is based in Chevy Chase, Maryland. To learn more about the Society and the field of endocrinology, visit our site at www.endo-society.org. Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/EndoMedia.
END
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2012-05-04
American and Spanish researchers have found potential ways for doctors to improve the treatment of hormone receptor-positive breast cancer even if they lack access to costly multi-gene tests, as they report at the 4th IMPAKT Breast Cancer Conference.
Because breast cancer is a biologically and clinically varied disease, doctors aim to choose appropriate treatments based on the characteristics of each patient's individual tumor. In the past, this has been done using pathology-based biomarkers; however these do not capture the full diversity of cancers.
"In this context, ...
2012-05-04
Tubal ectopic pregnancy (TEP) is currently the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths during the first trimester and a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM) shows that the hormone adrenomedullin (ADM) may help predict this condition.
TEP is a condition where the fertilized egg implants in the fallopian tubes instead of in the uterus. In pregnant women, cilia (small protuberances) pulsate, or beat, to propel an embryo through the fallopian tubes towards the uterus. Defects in ciliary beats ...
2012-05-04
New findings presented at Europe's leading breast cancer translational research conference this year shed new light on the many biological differences between individual breast cancers.
Focused on the biological features that make tumors more or less sensitive to important therapies, the new studies will help doctors make crucial choices about the most appropriate treatment for millions of patients.
"Despite major advances in the treatment of breast cancer many patients continue to relapse and die from the disease," noted Prof Mitch Dowsett from the Royal Marsden Hospital, ...
2012-05-04
A new analysis may help doctors identify breast cancer patients who will benefit from treatment with the immune suppressant drug everolimus, say French researchers at the 4th IMPAKT Breast Cancer Conference in Brussels, Belgium.
Everolimus is currently used as an immunosuppressant to prevent patients rejecting transplanted organs and in the treatment of renal cell cancer. Research is also being conducted into the drug's use in other cancers, including breast cancer.
Dr Thomas Bachelot, from Centre Leon Berard in Lyon and colleagues analyzed data from the TAMRAD study, ...
2012-05-04
Breast cancer patients whose tumors express high levels of genes related to immune response are more likely to have their tumor completely eradicated by pre-operative chemotherapy compared to patients with low expression of these genes, Belgian researchers report at the 4th IMPAKT Breast Cancer Conference in Brussels, Belgium.
Their research has identified a group of patients who might be good candidates for treatments with new immune-targeting therapies.
Dr Michail Ignatiadis from Institut Jules Bordet, Brussels, and colleagues analyzed gene expression data from eight ...
2012-05-04
Breast cancer in young women is a biologically unique disease that requires customized management strategies, researchers report at the 4th IMPAKT Breast Cancer Conference, in Brussels, Belgium.
The reported findings have potentially important implications for treatment, because breast cancer in young women is often aggressive and diagnosed at an advanced stage, meaning the prognosis for these patients is often poor.
Dr. Hatem A. Azim Jr., a medical oncologist from Institut Jules Bordet in Brussels, and colleagues showed that breast cancer in women forty-years or younger ...
2012-05-04
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Embryonic stem cells — those revered cells that give rise to every cell type in the body — just got another badge of honor. If they suffer damage that makes them a threat to the developing embryo, they swiftly fall on their swords for the greater good, according to a study published online May 3, 2012 in the journal Molecular Cell.
The finding offers a new glimpse into the private lives of stem cells that could help scientists use them to grow new neurons or other cells to replace those that have been lost in patients with Parkinson's and other diseases. ...
2012-05-04
May 3, 2012, New York, NY—The United States spends more on health care than 12 other industrialized countries yet does not provide "notably superior" care, according to a new study from The Commonwealth Fund. The U.S. spent nearly $8,000 per person in 2009 on health care services, while other countries in the study spent between one-third (Japan and New Zealand) and two-thirds (Norway and Switzerland) as much. While the U.S. performs well on breast and colorectal cancer survival rates, it has among the highest rates of potentially preventable deaths from asthma and amputations ...
2012-05-04
LA JOLLA, CA – May 3, 2012 - What genetic changes account for the vast behavioral differences between humans and other primates? Researchers so far have catalogued only a few, but now it seems that they can add a big one to the list. A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute has shown that an extra copy of a brain-development gene, which appeared in our ancestors' genomes about 2.4 million years ago, allowed maturing neurons to migrate farther and develop more connections.
Surprisingly, the added copy doesn't augment the function of the original gene, ...
2012-05-04
PULLMAN, Wash.—Washington State University researchers have found that ovarian disease can result from exposures to a wide range of environmental chemicals and be inherited by future generations.
WSU reproductive biologist Michael Skinner and his laboratory colleagues looked at how a fungicide, pesticide, plastic, dioxin and hydrocarbon mixtures affected a gestating rat's progeny for multiple generations. They saw subsequent generations inherit ovarian disease by "epigenetic transgenerational inheritance." Epigenetics regulates how genes are turned on and off in tissues ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] Some women may be genetically predisposed to smoking-related hot flashes
New study shows smokers with variants in specific genes at greater risk for hot flashes
