Outdoor air pollution and anti-Müllerian hormone concentrations in the Sister Study

Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) concentrations are a marker of ovarian reserve and are indicative of a woman's reproductive lifespan. Exposure to tobacco smoke has been associated with lower AMH concentrations; however, less is known about the association between ambient air pollution and ovarian reserve.

For 883 premenopausal Sister Study participants recruited between 2003 and 2009 in the United States, adult residential annual average concentrations of PM_2.5, PM₁₀, and NO₂ were estimated using validated universal kriging models incorporating land-use regression. We estimated the distance in meters to the nearest major road for both adult enrollment and childhood residences. Serum AMH was measured using an ultrasensitive ELISA assay. Samples with AMH concentrations below the detection limit were analyzed using a picoAMH ELISA assay. Multivariable-adjusted linear regression was used to estimate the percent change in AMH in relation to ambient residential air pollution, categorized in quartiles and per interquartile range increase, and distance to a major roadway.

Overall, we observed little to no evidence of associations between AMH and air pollution concentrations or proximity to roadways. Women in the highest quartile of NO₂ exposure, a traffic-related pollutant, had higher estimated AMH concentrations (Q4 vs. Q1, 42.9%; 95% CI = -3.4, 111.4) compared with the lowest quartile. However, lower mean AMH concentrations were observed for women living closer to a major roadway (<50 m to nearest roadway vs. ≥200 m = -32.9%; 95% CI = -56.1, 2.6).

We saw little consistent evidence to support an association between outdoor air pollution and diminished ovarian reserve in US women ages 35-54.