title: The association between the levels of serum ferritin and sex hormones in a large scale of Chinese male population.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The ferritin is an important participant of iron-storage but its regulation and related factors were not well defined. The present objective was to explore the potential association between serum ferritin levels and sex hormones.
  
  
  METHODS
  1999 Chinese men in the Fangchenggang Area Male Health and Examination Survey (FAMHES) were recruited in this cross-sectional study. Levels of serum ferritin, total testosterone (free testosterone was calculated from the total one), estradiol and sex hormone-binding protein were detected in venous blood samples. The effects of age, BMI, smoking as well as alcohol consumption were analyzed on ferritin levels, respectively, and then the Pearson's correlation analysis was used to evaluate the association between ferritin levels and sex hormones adjusting for the above factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The age, BMI and alcohol consumption significantly affected serum ferritin levels, but there was no significant difference between smokers and nonsmokers. Ferritin levels were significantly and negatively associated with total testosterone (R = -0.205, P< 0.001), sex hormone-binding protein (R = -0.161, P<0.001) and free testosterone (R = -0.097, P<0.001). After age and alcohol consumption were adjusted, the above associations were still significant (R = -0.200, -0.181 and -0.083, respectively, all P<0.001). However, there was only borderline negative association between ferritin levels and estradiol (adjusted R = -0.039, P = 0.083).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The large scale of epidemic results showed the significantly negative associations between serum ferritin levels and sex hormones, which may provide more clues to explore the potential regulation and biological mechanism of ferritin.
authors.affiliation: Hematology Department, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, China.
authors.forename: Zhenfang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Fanghui
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: Haiying
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Aihua
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: Shijun
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Lulu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Bingbing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: Xue
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Qin
authors.forename: Chunlei
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Zheng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Youjie
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Liao
authors.forename: Xiaobo
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Zengnan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Mo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D044466:Asian People; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004958:Estradiol / Q000097:blood*; D005293:Ferritins / Q000097:blood*; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones / Q000097:blood*; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012738:Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin / Q000378:metabolism*; D012907:Smoking; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones; D012738:Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin; D013739:Testosterone; D004958:Estradiol; D005293:Ferritins