Cargando…

The Time of Prenatal Androgen Exposure Affects Development of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome-Like Phenotype in Adulthood in Female Rats

BACKGROUND: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common reproductive disorders in women. Previous studies have shown that prenatal exposure of female fetuses to androgen can be considered an important factor in the development of PCOS. OBJECTIVES: In the present study we aimed to exam...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Ramezani Tehrani, Fahimeh, Noroozzadeh, Mahsa, Zahediasl, Saleh, Piryaei, Abbas, Hashemi, Somayeh, Azizi, Fereidoun
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Kowsar 2014
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4030220/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24910644
http://dx.doi.org/10.5812/ijem.16502
_version_ 1782317358889566208
author Ramezani Tehrani, Fahimeh
Noroozzadeh, Mahsa
Zahediasl, Saleh
Piryaei, Abbas
Hashemi, Somayeh
Azizi, Fereidoun
author_facet Ramezani Tehrani, Fahimeh
Noroozzadeh, Mahsa
Zahediasl, Saleh
Piryaei, Abbas
Hashemi, Somayeh
Azizi, Fereidoun
author_sort Ramezani Tehrani, Fahimeh
collection PubMed
description BACKGROUND: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common reproductive disorders in women. Previous studies have shown that prenatal exposure of female fetuses to androgen can be considered an important factor in the development of PCOS. OBJECTIVES: In the present study we aimed to examine the effects of prenatal exposure of female rat fetuses to previously documented doses of testosterone on different embryonic days on the development of PCOS phenotype in adulthood. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pregnant rats were divided into four groups, experimental and control groups. Three mg of free testosterone was administered subcutaneously to experimental group 1 on gestational days 16-19, daily and 20 mg on day 20, to experimental group 2, and the controls received solvent at the same times. Female offspring of these mothers aged between 90-100 days were examined for development and function of the reproductive system. Independent-sample student t test was used to compare the results between the experimental groups and controls. RESULTS: Anogenital distance (P < 0.001) and clitoris length were significantly increased in the offspring of both experimental groups (P < 0.001 and P < 0.05 respectively). Nipples were not formed in the offspring of experimental group 1, whereas in experimental group 2 the number of nipples was unchanged. Vaginal length was significantly decreased in the offspring of experimental group 1 (P < 0.001), whereas in experimental group 2, no significant difference was observed. In the offspring of experimental group 1, hormonal profiles did not differ, but in experimental group 2, levels of testosterone (P < 0.05) and LH (P < 0.01) were significantly increased, but estrogen (P < 0.05) and anti-Mullerian hormone levels (P < 0.001) were significantly decreased. A significant increase in the number of preantral and antral follicles was observed in the ovaries of offspring of experimental group 1 (P < 0.05); whereas there was no such a difference in experimental group 2. CONCLUSIONS: The time of prenatal exposure to androgens may have a significant role in the development of PCOS. Increased prenatal androgen levels are associated with hormonal changes and morphological disorders of the reproductive system. Therefore, avoiding exposure to androgen excess during critical periods of fetal development may prevent or reduce adulthood PCOS manifestations caused by prenatal excess androgen.
format Online
Article
Text
id pubmed-4030220
institution National Center for Biotechnology Information
language English
publishDate 2014
publisher Kowsar
record_format MEDLINE/PubMed
spelling pubmed-40302202014-06-06 The Time of Prenatal Androgen Exposure Affects Development of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome-Like Phenotype in Adulthood in Female Rats Ramezani Tehrani, Fahimeh Noroozzadeh, Mahsa Zahediasl, Saleh Piryaei, Abbas Hashemi, Somayeh Azizi, Fereidoun Int J Endocrinol Metab Research Article BACKGROUND: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common reproductive disorders in women. Previous studies have shown that prenatal exposure of female fetuses to androgen can be considered an important factor in the development of PCOS. OBJECTIVES: In the present study we aimed to examine the effects of prenatal exposure of female rat fetuses to previously documented doses of testosterone on different embryonic days on the development of PCOS phenotype in adulthood. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pregnant rats were divided into four groups, experimental and control groups. Three mg of free testosterone was administered subcutaneously to experimental group 1 on gestational days 16-19, daily and 20 mg on day 20, to experimental group 2, and the controls received solvent at the same times. Female offspring of these mothers aged between 90-100 days were examined for development and function of the reproductive system. Independent-sample student t test was used to compare the results between the experimental groups and controls. RESULTS: Anogenital distance (P < 0.001) and clitoris length were significantly increased in the offspring of both experimental groups (P < 0.001 and P < 0.05 respectively). Nipples were not formed in the offspring of experimental group 1, whereas in experimental group 2 the number of nipples was unchanged. Vaginal length was significantly decreased in the offspring of experimental group 1 (P < 0.001), whereas in experimental group 2, no significant difference was observed. In the offspring of experimental group 1, hormonal profiles did not differ, but in experimental group 2, levels of testosterone (P < 0.05) and LH (P < 0.01) were significantly increased, but estrogen (P < 0.05) and anti-Mullerian hormone levels (P < 0.001) were significantly decreased. A significant increase in the number of preantral and antral follicles was observed in the ovaries of offspring of experimental group 1 (P < 0.05); whereas there was no such a difference in experimental group 2. CONCLUSIONS: The time of prenatal exposure to androgens may have a significant role in the development of PCOS. Increased prenatal androgen levels are associated with hormonal changes and morphological disorders of the reproductive system. Therefore, avoiding exposure to androgen excess during critical periods of fetal development may prevent or reduce adulthood PCOS manifestations caused by prenatal excess androgen. Kowsar 2014-04-01 /pmc/articles/PMC4030220/ /pubmed/24910644 http://dx.doi.org/10.5812/ijem.16502 Text en Copyright © 2014, Research Institute For Endocrine Sciences and Iran Endocrine Society; Published by Kowsar Corp. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Ramezani Tehrani, Fahimeh
Noroozzadeh, Mahsa
Zahediasl, Saleh
Piryaei, Abbas
Hashemi, Somayeh
Azizi, Fereidoun
The Time of Prenatal Androgen Exposure Affects Development of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome-Like Phenotype in Adulthood in Female Rats
title The Time of Prenatal Androgen Exposure Affects Development of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome-Like Phenotype in Adulthood in Female Rats
title_full The Time of Prenatal Androgen Exposure Affects Development of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome-Like Phenotype in Adulthood in Female Rats
title_fullStr The Time of Prenatal Androgen Exposure Affects Development of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome-Like Phenotype in Adulthood in Female Rats
title_full_unstemmed The Time of Prenatal Androgen Exposure Affects Development of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome-Like Phenotype in Adulthood in Female Rats
title_short The Time of Prenatal Androgen Exposure Affects Development of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome-Like Phenotype in Adulthood in Female Rats
title_sort time of prenatal androgen exposure affects development of polycystic ovary syndrome-like phenotype in adulthood in female rats
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4030220/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24910644
http://dx.doi.org/10.5812/ijem.16502
work_keys_str_mv AT ramezanitehranifahimeh thetimeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT noroozzadehmahsa thetimeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT zahediaslsaleh thetimeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT piryaeiabbas thetimeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT hashemisomayeh thetimeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT azizifereidoun thetimeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT ramezanitehranifahimeh timeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT noroozzadehmahsa timeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT zahediaslsaleh timeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT piryaeiabbas timeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT hashemisomayeh timeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats
AT azizifereidoun timeofprenatalandrogenexposureaffectsdevelopmentofpolycysticovarysyndromelikephenotypeinadulthoodinfemalerats