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Updated: Mar 25, 2026

Evaluation of Hepatic Glucose Production in a Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Mouse Model
Published on: March 5, 2022
Is polycystic ovary syndrome a sexual conflict? A review
Livio Casarini1, Manuela Simoni2, Giulia Brigante3
1Unit of Endocrinology, Dept. Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy; Center for Genomic Research, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
Abstract:
Several studies have attempted to explain the high overall prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome among women worldwide (about 4-10%) despite its link to subfertile phenotypes. For this reason, it is considered an evolutionary paradox. In this review, we show that several genetic loci associated with the disease differently modulate the reproductive parameters of men and women. This observation suggests that such genetic variants lead to opposite effects in the two sexes in reproductive success. Intralocus sexual conflict as a cause of the persistence polycystic ovary syndrome genotypes among humans is supported.

