Extra-pituitary expressed follicle-stimulating hormone: Is it physiologically important?

Independent Skeletal Actions of Pituitary Hormones

Over the past years, pituitary hormones and their receptors have been shown to have non-traditional actions that allow them to bypass the hypothalamus-pituitary-effector glands axis. Bone cells-osteoblasts and osteoclasts-express receptors for growth hormone, follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), prolactin, oxytocin, and vasopressin. Independent skeletal actions of pituitary hormones on bone have been studied using genetically modified mice with haploinsufficiency and by activating or inactivating the receptors pharmacologically, without altering systemic effector hormone levels. On another front, the discovery of a TSH variant (TSH-βv) in immune cells in the bone marrow and skeletal action of FSHβ through tumor necrosis factor α provides new insights underscoring the integrated physiology of bone-immune-endocrine axis. Here we discuss the interaction of each pituitary hormone with bone and the potential it holds in understanding bone physiology and as a therapeutic target.

Follicle stimulating hormone, its association with glucose and lipid metabolism during the menopausal transition

AIM

Accumulative evidence shows that follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) is associated with metabolic disorders. We aimed to ascertain the relationship between FSH, blood glucose and lipid metabolism in general perimenopausal women.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study analyzed 2121 perimenopausal women aged 40-54 years in Zhejiang Province from January 2016 to December 2018. Regression analysis was performed to assess the relationship between FSH and metabolic parameters.

RESULTS

Serum FSH had a significant inverse association with fasting plasma glucose (P < 0.05) and triglycerides (TG) (P < 0.01) in perimenopausal women. However, after adjusting for body mass index, there was no significant association between FSH and fasting plasma glucose. In a model fully adjusted for demographic variables, estradiol, body mass index, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, homocysteine, systolic blood pressure and blood viscosity, a significant association still existed between FSH and TG (standardized β = -0.095; R² = 0.155; P = 0.002).

CONCLUSION

Overall, FSH is negatively associated with metabolic parameters, especially TG, in perimenopausal women. These results indicated that FSH might be a biomarker for the primary prevention of disorders with lipid metabolism during the menopausal period.