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Dubois V, Ciancia S, Doms S, El Kharraz S, Sommers V, Kim NR, David K, Van Dijck J, Valle-Tenney R, Maes C, Antonio L, Decallonne B, Carmeliet G, Claessens F, Cools M, Vanderschueren D. Testosterone Restores Body Composition, Bone Mass, and Bone Strength Following Early Puberty Suppression in a Mouse Model Mimicking the Clinical Strategy in Trans Boys. J Bone Miner Res 2023; 38:1497-1508. [PMID: 37222072 DOI: 10.1002/jbmr.4832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Revised: 04/24/2023] [Accepted: 05/13/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Transgender youth increasingly present at pediatric gender services. Some of them receive long-term puberty suppression with gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues (GnRHa) before starting gender-affirming hormones (GAH). The impact of GnRHa use started in early puberty on bone composition and bone mass accrual is unexplored. It is furthermore unclear whether subsequent GAH fully restore GnRHa effects and whether the timing of GAH introduction matters. To answer these questions, we developed a mouse model mimicking the clinical strategy applied in trans boys. Prepubertal 4-week-old female mice were treated with GnRHa alone or with GnRHa supplemented with testosterone (T) from 6 weeks (early puberty) or 8 weeks (late puberty) onward. Outcomes were analyzed at 16 weeks and compared with untreated mice of both sexes. GnRHa markedly increased total body fat mass, decreased lean body mass, and had a modest negative impact on grip strength. Both early and late T administration shaped body composition to adult male levels, whereas grip strength was restored to female values. GnRHa-treated animals showed lower trabecular bone volume and reduced cortical bone mass and strength. These changes were reversed by T to female levels (cortical bone mass and strength) irrespective of the time of administration or even fully up to adult male control values (trabecular parameters) in case of earlier T start. The lower bone mass in GnRHa-treated mice was associated with increased bone marrow adiposity, also reversed by T. In conclusion, prolonged GnRHa use started in prepubertal female mice modifies body composition toward more fat and less lean mass and impairs bone mass acquisition and strength. Subsequent T administration counteracts GnRHa impact on these parameters, shaping body composition and trabecular parameters to male values while restoring cortical bone architecture and strength up to female but not male control levels. These findings could help guide clinical strategies in transgender care. © 2023 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).
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Affiliation(s)
- Vanessa Dubois
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology, Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism (Chrometa), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Basic and Translational Endocrinology (BaTE), Department of Basic and Applied Medical Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Silvia Ciancia
- Department of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Stefanie Doms
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology, Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism (Chrometa), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Sarah El Kharraz
- Molecular Endocrinology Laboratory, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Laboratory of Cellular Metabolism and Metabolic Regulation, VIB-KU Leuven Center for Cancer Biology, VIB, Leuven, Belgium
- Laboratory of Cellular Metabolism and Metabolic Regulation, Department of Oncology, KU Leuven and Leuven Cancer Institute (LKI), Leuven, Belgium
| | - Vera Sommers
- Molecular Endocrinology Laboratory, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Na Ri Kim
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology, Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism (Chrometa), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Karel David
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology, Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism (Chrometa), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Endocrinology, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jolien Van Dijck
- Laboratory of Skeletal Cell Biology and Physiology (SCEBP), Skeletal Biology and Engineering Research Center (SBE), Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Roger Valle-Tenney
- Laboratory of Skeletal Cell Biology and Physiology (SCEBP), Skeletal Biology and Engineering Research Center (SBE), Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Christa Maes
- Laboratory of Skeletal Cell Biology and Physiology (SCEBP), Skeletal Biology and Engineering Research Center (SBE), Department of Development and Regeneration, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Leen Antonio
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology, Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism (Chrometa), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Endocrinology, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Brigitte Decallonne
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology, Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism (Chrometa), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Endocrinology, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Geert Carmeliet
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology, Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism (Chrometa), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Frank Claessens
- Molecular Endocrinology Laboratory, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Martine Cools
- Department of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- Pediatric Endocrinology Service, Department of Pediatrics, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Dirk Vanderschueren
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology, Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism (Chrometa), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Endocrinology, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW The purpose of this review is to summarize the scientific evidence on bone health in transgender and gender diverse (TGD) youth. RECENT FINDINGS Gender-affirming medical therapies may be introduced during a key window of skeletal development in TGD adolescents. Before treatment, low bone density for age is more prevalent than expected in TGD youth. Bone mineral density Z-scores decrease with gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists and differentially respond to subsequent estradiol or testosterone. Risk factors for low bone density in this population include low body mass index, low physical activity, male sex designated at birth, and vitamin D deficiency. Peak bone mass attainment and implications for future fracture risk are not yet known. TGD youth have higher than expected rates of low bone density prior to initiation of gender-affirming medical therapy. More studies are needed to understand the skeletal trajectories of TGD youth receiving medical interventions during puberty.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janet Y Lee
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94143, USA.
- Department of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology & Metabolism, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94143, USA.
- Endocrine and Metabolism Section, San Francisco Veterans Affairs Health Care System, San Francisco, CA, USA.
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Ali D, Tencerova M, Figeac F, Kassem M, Jafari A. The pathophysiology of osteoporosis in obesity and type 2 diabetes in aging women and men: The mechanisms and roles of increased bone marrow adiposity. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2022; 13:981487. [PMID: 36187112 PMCID: PMC9520254 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2022.981487] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2022] [Accepted: 08/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Osteoporosis is defined as a systemic skeletal disease characterized by decreased bone mass and micro-architectural deterioration leading to increased fracture risk. Osteoporosis incidence increases with age in both post-menopausal women and aging men. Among other important contributing factors to bone fragility observed in osteoporosis, that also affect the elderly population, are metabolic disturbances observed in obesity and Type 2 Diabetes (T2D). These metabolic complications are associated with impaired bone homeostasis and a higher fracture risk. Expansion of the Bone Marrow Adipose Tissue (BMAT), at the expense of decreased bone formation, is thought to be one of the key pathogenic mechanisms underlying osteoporosis and bone fragility in obesity and T2D. Our review provides a summary of mechanisms behind increased Bone Marrow Adiposity (BMA) during aging and highlights the pre-clinical and clinical studies connecting obesity and T2D, to BMA and bone fragility in aging osteoporotic women and men.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dalia Ali
- Department of Molecular Endocrinology, KMEB, University of Southern Denmark and Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark
- *Correspondence: Dalia Ali, ; Abbas Jafari,
| | - Michaela Tencerova
- Laboratory of Molecular Physiology of Bone, Institute of Physiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czechia
| | - Florence Figeac
- Department of Molecular Endocrinology, KMEB, University of Southern Denmark and Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark
| | - Moustapha Kassem
- Department of Molecular Endocrinology, KMEB, University of Southern Denmark and Odense University Hospital, Odense, Denmark
| | - Abbas Jafari
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- *Correspondence: Dalia Ali, ; Abbas Jafari,
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