We have known for some time that the age at which women go through menopause is partly determined by genes. This study now tells us that there are likely hundreds of genes involved.
- John Perry
The findings, just published in the journal Nature Genetics, suggest that the reproductive cells or ‘eggs’ in a woman’s ovaries (known as oocytes) that repair damaged DNA more efficiently survive longer. This results in a later age at menopause, which marks the end of a woman’s reproductive lifetime. Previous research has shown that DNA is regularly damaged by age and by toxic substances such as cigarette smoke - hence women who smoke go through menopause 1-2 years earlier on average than non-smokers.
Our cells have many mechanisms to detect and repair such damage, but cells die when too much damage accumulates. DNA is also damaged and repaired during the production of eggs – therefore these genes might also act to enhance a woman’s pool of eggs which is set in early life.
In a collaboration involving scientists from 177 institutions worldwide, the authors undertook a genome-wide association study of almost 70,000 women of European ancestry.
Read the full story
Image:Human egg
Credit: Ed Uthman
Reproduced courtesy of the University of Cambridge
_____________________________________________