A metabolic view on menopause and ageing

Area of Science:

• Metabolomics
• Gerontology
• Endocrinology

Background:

• Global population is aging, necessitating research into age-related metabolic changes.
• Understanding sex and menopause influences on metabolism is crucial for health.
• Metabolic fingerprints vary with age, sex, and menopausal status.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effects of age, sex, and menopause on serum metabolites.
• To identify specific metabolite changes associated with menopause.
• To explore the link between menopause, amino acid profiles, and metabolic risk.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of serum metabolites in 26,065 individuals of Northern European ancestry.
• Meta-analysis of 10,083 women to assess menopause status associations.
• Focused analysis on 3,204 women aged 40-55 years.

Main Results:

• Significant differences in age-specific metabolic fingerprints by gender.
• Menopause associated with an atherogenic shift, including altered amino acids (glutamine, tyrosine, isoleucine, glycine) and lipids.
• Specific associations found between menopause and cholesterol, lipoproteins, and various fatty acids.

Conclusions:

• Menopause significantly impacts serum amino acid and lipid profiles.
• These metabolic shifts may contribute to future metabolic and cardiovascular risk.
• Amino acid concentrations are important in metabolic disease progression, particularly around menopause.