| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Submitted on December 14, 2005
Accepted on March 13, 2006
Dept. of Internal Medicine, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands and School of Biological and Molecular Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Headington, Oxford, United Kingdom
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: j.visser{at}erasmusmc.nl.
Reproductive aging is the decline of female fertility with age. It is caused by the decrease in the number of growing follicles, resulting from primordial follicle pool depletion. Recently, we have shown that anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) is produced by growing follicles and studies in women indicate that serum AMH levels decrease with age and correlate with antral follicle count. However, whether serum AMH levels correlate directly with the size of the primordial follicle pool cannot be determined in women.
Here, we describe studies in mice in which we determined the dynamics of ovarian follicles during aging. Furthermore, we describe the development of a mouse AMH ELISA, allowing us to measure AMH levels in mice, for the first time. We observed that serum AMH levels decline with increasing age, whereas expression of AMH in individual growing follicles, studied by immunohistochemistry, did not change with age. Thus, the decline in serum AMH correlates directly with the decline in number of growing follicles (r = 0.86, P < 0.0001). We observed that the number of growing follicles correlated with the number of primordial follicles (r = 0.93, P < 0.0001). Similarly, we found a strong correlation between AMH levels and number of primordial follicles (r = 0.83, P < 0.0001).
In conclusion, serum AMH levels reflect the size of the primordial follicle pool in aging mice. Therefore, AMH is an excellent marker to assess the quantitative aspect of ovarian reserve, which may be useful for women at risk for early ovarian aging such as survivors of childhood cancers.
This article has been cited by other articles:
 |
|
 |
|
  C. Rico, S. Fabre, C. Medigue, N. d. Clemente, F. Clement, M. Bontoux, J.-L. Touze, M. Dupont, E. Briant, B. Remy, et al. Anti-Mullerian Hormone Is an Endocrine Marker of Ovarian Gonadotropin-Responsive Follicles and Can Help to Predict Superovulatory Responses in the Cow Biol Reprod, January 1, 2009; 80(1): 50 - 59. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 J. van Disseldorp, M. J. Faddy, A. P. N. Themmen, F. H. de Jong, P. H. M. Peeters, Y. T. van der Schouw, and F. J. M. Broekmans Relationship of Serum Antimullerian Hormone Concentration to Age at Menopause J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., June 1, 2008; 93(6): 2129 - 2134. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 C.H. de Koning, J. McDonnell, A.P.N. Themmen, F.H. de Jong, R. Homburg, and C.B. Lambalk The endocrine and follicular growth dynamics throughout the menstrual cycle in women with consistently or variably elevated early follicular phase FSH compared with controls Hum. Reprod., June 1, 2008; 23(6): 1416 - 1423. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
M. E. Kevenaar, J. S. E. Laven, S. L. Fong, A. G. Uitterlinden, F. H. de Jong, A. P. N. Themmen, and J. A. Visser A Functional Anti-Mullerian Hormone Gene Polymorphism Is Associated with Follicle Number and Androgen Levels in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Patients J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., April 1, 2008; 93(4): 1310 - 1316. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 T.E.M. Verhagen, D.J. Hendriks, L.F.J.M.M. Bancsi, B.W.J. Mol, and F.J.M. Broekmans The accuracy of multivariate models predicting ovarian reserve and pregnancy after in vitro fertilization: a meta-analysis Hum. Reprod. Update, March 1, 2008; 14(2): 95 - 100. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 E. W Kabithe and N. J Place Photoperiod-dependent modulation of anti-Mullerian hormone in female Siberian hamsters, Phodopus sungorus Reproduction, March 1, 2008; 135(3): 335 - 342. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
S. Lie Fong, P.J. Lugtenburg, I. Schipper, A.P.N. Themmen, F.H. de Jong, P. Sonneveld, and J.S.E. Laven Anti-mullerian hormone as a marker of ovarian function in women after chemotherapy and radiotherapy for haematological malignancies Hum. Reprod., March 1, 2008; 23(3): 674 - 678. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
C. Tatone, F. Amicarelli, M. C. Carbone, P. Monteleone, D. Caserta, R. Marci, P. G. Artini, P. Piomboni, and R. Focarelli Cellular and molecular aspects of ovarian follicle ageing Hum. Reprod. Update, March 1, 2008; 14(2): 131 - 142. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
R. D. van Beek, M. M. van den Heuvel-Eibrink, J. S. E. Laven, F. H. de Jong, A. P. N. Themmen, F. G. Hakvoort-Cammel, C. van den Bos, H. van den Berg, R. Pieters, and S. M. P. F. de Muinck Keizer-Schrama Anti-Mullerian Hormone Is a Sensitive Serum Marker for Gonadal Function in Women Treated for Hodgkin's Lymphoma during Childhood J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., October 1, 2007; 92(10): 3869 - 3874. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 K. J. McTavish, M. Jimenez, K. A. Walters, J. Spaliviero, N. P. Groome, A. P. Themmen, J. A. Visser, D. J. Handelsman, and C. M. Allan Rising Follicle-Stimulating Hormone Levels with Age Accelerate Female Reproductive Failure Endocrinology, September 1, 2007; 148(9): 4432 - 4439. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
S. M. Nelson, R. W. Yates, and R. Fleming Serum anti-Mullerian hormone and FSH: prediction of live birth and extremes of response in stimulated cycles implications for individualization of therapy Hum. Reprod., September 1, 2007; 22(9): 2414 - 2421. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
M. E. Kevenaar, A. P.N. Themmen, J. S.E. Laven, B. Sonntag, S. L. Fong, A. G. Uitterlinden, F. H. de Jong, H. A.P. Pols, M. Simoni, and J. A. Visser Anti-Mullerian hormone and anti-Mullerian hormone type II receptor polymorphisms are associated with follicular phase estradiol levels in normo-ovulatory women Hum. Reprod., June 1, 2007; 22(6): 1547 - 1554. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
J. A. Visser, A. L. L. Durlinger, I. J. J. Peters, E. R. van den Heuvel, U. M. Rose, P. Kramer, F. H. de Jong, and A. P. N. Themmen Increased Oocyte Degeneration and Follicular Atresia during the Estrous Cycle in Anti-Mullerian Hormone Null Mice Endocrinology, May 1, 2007; 148(5): 2301 - 2308. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
A. Al-Qahtani and N. P. Groome Anti-Mullerian Hormone: Cinderella Finds New Admirers. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., October 1, 2006; 91(10): 3760 - 3762. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH |
| Endocrinology | Endocrine Reviews | J. Clin. End. & Metab. |
| Molecular Endocrinology | Recent Prog. Horm. Res. | All Endocrine Journals |
