title: The effects of hormone replacement therapy on carbohydrate metabolism and cardiovascular risk factors in surgically postmenopausal cynomolgus monkeys.
abstract: Controversy exists regarding the effects of estrogen and estrogen/progestin replacement therapies on glucose tolerance and insulin resistance. Also unknown are whether changes in glucose tolerance and insulin resistance with hormone therapy affect arterial glycation and atherosclerosis. We studied ovariectomized female monkeys fed a lipid-lowering diet and given either no hormone replacement therapy (n = 25) or conjugated equine estrogens (CEE) alone (n = 22) or combined with medroxyprogesterone acetate ([MPA] n = 21) for 30 months. Monkeys receiving combined hormone replacement had significantly higher fasting glucose and insulin levels and higher insulin responses to a glucose challenge compared with controls or those given estrogen alone. Monkeys given estrogen-only therapy had lower body weights, lower measures of abdominal adiposity, and decreased serum androgen concentrations. However, due to the effective dietary lipid decrease, there was no additional effect of hormone treatment on atherosclerosis. Also, there was no correlation between either arterial glycation or insulin levels and atherosclerosis extent. Thus, although there were adverse effects of combined hormone replacement therapy on carbohydrate metabolism, we were unable to determine whether these effects altered the extent of atherosclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Comparative Medicine Clinical Research Center and Department of Internal Medicine, Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, USA.
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Wagner
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Martino
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Jayo
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Anthony
authors.forename: T B
authors.initials: TB
authors.lastname: Clarkson
authors.forename: W T
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: Cefalu
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000166:cytology; D000818:Animals; D001161:Arteriosclerosis / Q000473:pathology; D001823:Body Composition; D050260:Carbohydrate Metabolism; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases; D015914:Estrogen Replacement Therapy; D004967:Estrogens / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D017127:Glycation End Products, Advanced / Q000378:metabolism; D006736:Horses; D008252:Macaca fascicularis; D017258:Medroxyprogesterone Acetate / Q000494:pharmacology; D010052:Ovariectomy; D017698:Postmenopause; D011184:Postoperative Period; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D004967:Estrogens; D017127:Glycation End Products, Advanced; D017258:Medroxyprogesterone Acetate