Assessment of ghrelin and leptin receptor levels in postmenopausal women who received oral or transdermal menopausal hormonal therapy.
OBJECTIVE
In postmenopausal women, an increased leptin concentration and reduced levels of ghrelin and adiponectin were observed. The aim of this study was to evaluate the concentrations of the active form of ghrelin, total ghrelin, leptin receptor, lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)), and plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 (PAI-1) in postmenopausal women who received oral or transdermal menopausal hormonal therapy (MHT).


METHODS
The study involved 76 healthy women: 46 women aged from 44 to 58 years who received oral (26) or transdermal (20) MHT; the control group consisted of 30 women aged from 44 to 54 years who did not receive MHT. The plasma concentrations of total ghrelin, the active form of ghrelin, Lp(a), and PAI-1:Ag were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The concentration of the leptin receptor was measured by enzyme immunometric assay (EIA).


RESULTS
We observed a significantly higher concentration of total ghrelin and the active form of ghrelin in women who received transdermal MHT in comparison with those who took oral MHT. We also found a significantly lower concentration of total ghrelin in women who received oral MHT compared with the control group. A higher concentration of PAI-1:Ag was found in the group of women who took transdermal MHT in comparison with those who took oral MHT and with the control group. The differences were statistically significant. Additionally, we found a significant negative correlation between the concentrations of total ghrelin and PAI-1:Ag and a positive correlation between the concentrations of total ghrelin and leptin receptor in women who received transdermal MHT.


CONCLUSIONS
The study showed that women who used transdermal MHT had higher levels of total ghrelin than women who took oral MHT. This indicates a beneficial effect of the transdermal route of MHT. However, transdermal therapy was associated with adverse effects with regard to the observed higher levels of PAI-1:Ag, which in turn, can lead to a reduction in fibrinolytic activity.
Department of Pathophysiology, Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Poland. ruszkowska.basia@gmail.com
Barbara
B
Ruszkowska
Alina
A
Sokup
Arleta
A
Kulwas
Maciej W
MW
Socha
Krzysztof
K
Góralczyk
Barbara
B
Góralczyk
Danuta
D
Rość
D000279:Administration, Cutaneous; D000284:Administration, Oral; D000328:Adult; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D015914:Estrogen Replacement Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D004967:Estrogens / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005260:Female; D054439:Ghrelin / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D017270:Lipoprotein(a) / Q000097:blood; D008875:Middle Aged; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1 / Q000097:blood; D017698:Postmenopause / Q000097:blood*; D054411:Receptors, Leptin / Q000097:blood*
D004967:Estrogens; D054439:Ghrelin; D017270:Lipoprotein(a); D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1; D054411:Receptors, Leptin