The rs5934505 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) is associated with low testosterone and late‐onset hypogonadism, but the rs10822184 SNP is associated with overweight and obesity in a Chinese Han population: a case–control study

Abstract

SUMMARYLow testosterone is associated with late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) and obesity. Recently, studies have shown that four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), rs12150660, rs727428, rs5934505, and rs10822184, are associated with testosterone levels in populations of European descent. Therefore, we investigated whether the SNP loci are related to low testosterone, LOH, or obesity in a Chinese Han population. Ruling out co-morbidities, DNA was prepared from 409 men (aged 40-65 years) with low serum testosterone (defined as total testosterone <11.6 nmol/L) and 1 : 1 normal controls (matched age, body mass index (BMI), and the same living area) who were selected from 6898 males. According to the same standards, 310 men with LOH and 1 : 1 normal controls were selected from 6898 males. Excluding the cases with an unreliable sequencing result, genetic analyses were performed. The minor allele frequencies of the SNP loci rs12150660, rs727428, rs5934505, and rs10822184 were 0.1%, 44.6%, 18.7%, and 38.9%, respectively. rs5934505 was associated with the serum total testosterone and calculated free testosterone (CFT) levels (p = 0.045 and p = 0.021). rs5934505 (C>T) was associated with an increased risk of low total testosterone, low CFT, and LOH and adjusted for other factors, with an odds ratio (OR) of 2.01 (1.34-3.01), 2.14 (1.42-3.20), and 1.64 (1.04-2.58). rs10822184 was significantly correlated with weight and BMI (p = 0.035 and p = 0.027). rs10822184 (T>C) was associated with an increased risk of overweight and obesity. We adjusted for other factors, with odds ratios (ORs) of 1.94 (1.36-2.78) and 1.56 (1.00-2.43). In summary, our study provided convincing evidence that rs5934505 (C>T) was associated with the risk of low testosterone and LOH in Chinese populations. We were the first to find that rs10822184 (T>C) was significantly correlated with the risk of overweight and obesity in Chinese populations. However, further large and functional studies are warranted to confirm our findings.

The plasma miR-125a, miR-361 and miR-133a are promising novel biomarkers for Late-Onset Hypogonadism

“…The methods were carried out in accordance with the approved guidelines. All of the participants who were enrolled in the study gave their written informed consent 7 .…”

“…Men between the ages of 18 and 89 years were invited to undergo a health assessment by questionnaire, physical examination, and blood tests for biochemical and hormone measurements. A total of 6898 men were recruited without the use of specific exclusion criteria 7 .…”

“…Interviewer-assisted questionnaires that were administered included the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), the Beck Depression Inventory, and the simplified Chinese version of the aging males’ symptoms scale (CN-AMS). A detailed description of the study has been reported previously 7 36 .…”

“…Ten millilitres (10 ml) of fasting blood samples was collected between 08:00 h and 10:00 h on the day of screening, with five millilitres (5 ml) stored in an ethylene diamine tetra acetic acid (EDTA) vial and five millilitres (5 ml) stored in a vacuum drying vial 7 .…”

“…By 2050, there will be the same number of old (aged 60 or over) and young (under age 15) people in the world, with 2 billion people aged 60 or over 6 . With increasing life expectancy, the field of LOH is attracting increasing interest in the medical community and the public at large 7 .…”