various age-related diseases – bone weakness, sexual dysfunction, Diabetes mellitus, cancerand cardiovascular disease – can be predicted by a single hormone that appears at constant levels throughout a man’s life, new research reveals.
that hormone INSL3, and first appears in adolescence. After that, its levels decline only slightly in old age. This consistency and the young age at which it appears makes INSL3 valuable to scientists, and perhaps to men’s health.
People with low levels of INSL3 at a young age probably also have low levels of the hormone in old age, new research shows. suggests that these health risks could be managed years in advance.
“Understanding why people are more likely to develop disabilities and illnesses as they age will help guide interventions to ensure that people not only live longer, but also live healthier lives as they age. essential to find out.” Reproductive endocrinologist Ravinder Anand-Ivell said: From the University of Nottingham, England.
“Our discovery of hormones is an important step in understanding this, and paves the way not only for helping people individually, but also for helping alleviate the care crisis we face as a society.” prize.”
INSL3 is made by the same cells in the testes that produce testosterone. Unlike testosterone, INSL3 does not fluctuate as men reach adulthood.
To monitor levels of INSL3 in blood, researchers collected samples from over 2,200 men at eight different regional centers in Europe. Men’s INSL3 levels were stable over time, with large inter-individual variability, and were sufficient to separate health risks.
Researchers found that INSL3 levels in the blood Leydig cells In the testes – less of these cells and less testosterone linked To numerous health problems later in life.
“Now that we know the important role this hormone plays in predicting disease and how it varies in men, we turned our attention to finding the factors that most influence levels of INSL3 in the blood. I’m here. says molecular endocrinologist Richard Eibel From Nottingham University.
“Preliminary studies suggest that nutrition at an early age may play a role, but many other factors, such as genetics and exposure to environmental endocrine disruptors, may be involved. I have.”
Across nine morbidity categories reported by participants in questionnaires, including cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular disease, INSL3 was associated with increased morbidity risk in eight of them ( depression (No correlation was found in this study).
However, when researchers adjusted for other hormonal and lifestyle factors such as BMI and smoking status, most of these associations with INSL3 were lost, with the exception of hypertension and cardiovascular disease.
And when testing whether INSL3 levels in blood samples from a subset of men could predict health outcomes after about four years, low hormone levels were associated with seven of the nine comorbidity categories. Again, this does not consider other factors.
One area that scientists hope to explore in future research is how INSL3 is related to sexual health, which has a strong relationship with testosterone, but in this particular study Details were not included.
Future studies also need to focus on longer time periods to determine whether INSL3 measured in younger or middle-aged men truly predicts the later emergence of age-dependent health problems. There is,” said the researcher. Conclusion.
If further research establishes a link between INSL3 and these health risks, and if scientists can pinpoint why that link exists, it could be used to discover and prevent a variety of age-related health conditions. This means that preparation for the avoid problems.
“The ultimate goal of aging research is to reduce the fitness gap that occurs with aging.” Anand Ivel says.
This research The forefront of endocrinology.
