Scientist Might Have Finally Found The Cause And Cure For Polycystic Ovaries

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Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a condition which affects roughly one in five women. Scientists now believe they've found out why. (Just in the nick of time for National Women's Health Week.)

According to the findings of a study published in Nature Medicine, there is a link between hormonal imbalance in the womb and PCOS, particularly prenatal exposure to a growth factor with the name anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH).

The team, led by Paolo Giacobini at the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research, discovered that levels of AMH were 30% higher in pregnant women with PCOS compared to those without. Because there's a hereditary component to the condition, the group decided to test whether or not women with that hormonal imbalance give birth to daughters who also develop PCOS.

“It’s a radical new way of thinking about polycystic ovary syndrome and opens up a whole range of opportunities for further investigation,” Robert Norman from the University of Adelaide, Australia, explained, according to New Scientist.

For the study's purposes, the researchers injected pregnant mice with AMH to have a higher than average concentration of the hormone. They indeed gave birth to daughters who later developed PCOS-like tendencies. Those included issues with fertility delayed puberty, and erratic ovulation.

Researchers said that the added AMH seemed to prompt the overstimulation of a specific set of brain cells named GnRH neurons, which are responsible for managing the testosterone levels of the body. The offspring, therefore, displayed higher levels of testosterone. That led to a "masculinization of the exposed female fetus" and a "PCOS-like reproductive and neuroendocrine phenotype" by the time they reached maturity.

However, excitingly, the team weren't only able to determine the cause of PCOS, they also managed to reverse it (in mice, anyway). To do so, the researchers dosed the polycystic mice with an IVF drug called cetrorelix, making the symptoms go away.

This could be fantastic news for the millions of women who suffer from this condition, with symptoms such as excessive hair growth, hair loss, acne, and obesity. Nevertheless, the condition's characteristics might vary from patient to patient. It's also the most common cause of infertility.

The team is now planning to trial the drug in humans later in 2018.

“It could be an attractive strategy to restore ovulation and eventually increase the pregnancy rate in these women,” said Giacobini, reports New Scientist.

Reference: Iflscience