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Related Experiment Videos

The lean woman.

Fariba Baghaei1, Roland Rosmond, Lars Westberg

  • 1Department of Heart and Lung Diseases, University of Göteborg, Göteborg, Sweden.

Obesity Research
|February 12, 2002
PubMed
Summary

Maintaining a lean body mass is rare in today's obesity epidemic. This study characterized lean, healthy premenopausal women, revealing a genetic link to the aromatase P450 gene that may regulate body fat.

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Area of Science:

  • Endocrinology
  • Genetics
  • Obesity Research

Background:

  • The current obesity epidemic makes maintaining a lean physique uncommon.
  • Characterizing individuals who remain lean provides valuable insights into health and metabolism.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To characterize the anthropometric, metabolic, endocrine, and psychological profiles of lean premenopausal women.
  • To investigate potential genetic factors, specifically the aromatase P450 gene, associated with leanness.

Main Methods:

  • Selected 40-year-old non-smoking premenopausal women with a body mass index (BMI) of 21.1 kg/m(2).
  • Compared these lean women with their non-lean counterparts.
  • Assessed anthropometric measures, hormone levels (17 beta-estradiol, androgens, IGF-I, thyroid hormones, DHEA-S, cortisol, ACTH), and psychological health via questionnaires.

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  • Analyzed a tetranucleotide repeat polymorphism in the aromatase P450 gene.

    • Main Results:

    • Lean women exhibited lower waist-to-hip ratio and abdominal sagittal diameter.
    • They had higher 17 beta-estradiol and lower androgens.
    • A longer tetranucleotide repeat polymorphism in the aromatase P450 gene was observed in lean women.

    Conclusions:

    • Lean, non-smoking women demonstrate excellent health across multiple domains.
    • A well-functioning aromatase system, potentially influenced by genetics (aromatase P450 gene), may contribute to maintaining leanness.
    • The aromatase gene could play a significant role in regulating body fat mass.