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The cost of reproduction in women: Reproductive effort and oxidative stress in premenopausal and postmenopausal American women
Author(s) -
Ziomkiewicz Anna,
Frumkin Amara,
Zhang Yawei,
Sancilio Amelia,
Bribiescas Richard G.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
american journal of human biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.559
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1520-6300
pISSN - 1042-0533
DOI - 10.1002/ajhb.23069
Subject(s) - oxidative stress , menopause , parity (physics) , medicine , population , physiology , demography , gynecology , endocrinology , environmental health , physics , particle physics , sociology
Objectives Life history theory predicts a trade‐off between female investment in reproduction and somatic maintenance, which can result in accelerated senescence. Oxidative stress has been shown to be a causal physiological mechanism for accelerated aging and a possible contributor to this trade‐off. We aimed to test the hypothesis for the existence of significant associations between measures of reproductive effort and the level of oxidative stress biomarkers in premenopausal and postmenopausal American women. Methods Serum samples and questionnaire data were collected from 63 premenopausal and postmenopausal women (mean age 53.4 years), controls in the Connecticut Thyroid Health Study, between May 2010 and December 2013. Samples were analyzed for levels of 8‐OHdG and Cu/Zn‐SOD using immunoassay method. Results Levels of oxidative damage (8‐OHdG) but not oxidative defense (Cu/Zn‐SOD) were negatively associated with parity and number of sons in premenopausal women ( r = −0.52 for parity, r = −0.52 for number of sons, P < .01). Together, measures of reproductive effort, women's BMI, age, and menopausal status explained around 15% of variance in level of 8‐OHdG. No association between reproductive effort characteristics and oxidative damage was found for postmenopausal women. Conclusions We found no evidence of a trade‐off between somatic maintenance as measured by 8‐OHdG and reproductive effort in women from this American population. On the contrary, higher gravidity and parity in premenopausal women was associated with lower damage to cellular DNA caused by oxidative stress. These results highlight the importance of population variation and environmental conditions when testing the occurrence of life‐history trade‐offs.