Neuroendocrine Regulation and Oxidative Stress Parameters in Women of Reproductive Age of Different Ethnic Groups with Hyperandrogenic Phenotypes of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

BACKGROUND: Polycystic ovary syndrome is considered a pressing problem that significantly reduces the quality of life of women. Patients with androgenic phenotypes of this disease are allocated to a special observation group for the development of metabolic disorders and related complications. It has now been proven that there are ethnic differences in the manifestations of polycystic ovary syndrome, but its hormonal and metabolic aspects in representatives of the indigenous ethnic groups of Eastern Siberia have not yet been assessed. Understanding these processes will contribute to the personalization of the prevention and treatment of polycystic ovary syndrome in reproductive age.

AIM: The aim of this study was to determine changes in the parameters of neuroendocrine regulation and oxidative stress in reproductive-age women of different ethnic groups with hyperandrogenic phenotypes of polycystic ovary syndrome.

METHODS: This study included 186 women of reproductive age (18–44 years old) living in the Irkutsk region and the Republic of Buryatia. Groups of women with polycystic ovary syndrome of Russian (n = 67) and Buryat (n = 27) ethnic groups and corresponding control groups (n = 68 and n = 24) were formed.

RESULTS: Both Russian and Buryat ethnic patients with polycystic ovary syndrome had elevated testosterone levels, free androgen indices, and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate levels, as well as reduced sex hormone-binding globulin levels relative to the corresponding control values. At the same time, Russian patients also had increased anti-Müllerian hormone levels. Oxidative stress parameters in the group of Russian ethnic women with polycystic ovary syndrome were expressed by elevated retinol levels, while in Buryat ethnic women, they were expressed by increased values of thiobarbituric acid products, as well as reduced glutathione and α-tocopherol levels.

CONCLUSION: The data obtained indicate the presence of dramatic changes in neuroendocrine regulation in women with polycystic ovary syndrome, regardless of ethnicity. At the same time, compensatory shifts in the antioxidant defense system in women of the Russian ethnicity and activation of lipid peroxidation in patients of the Buryat ethnic group were revealed. The results also indicate the need to assess and control the levels of these metabolites in women with polycystic ovary syndrome, taking into account their ethnicity.