The Role of Environmental Factors in the Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)

Introduction: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common, complex, and heterogeneous endocrine disorder in women of reproductive age. Its prevalence is estimated to be between 5% and 10% and even up to 21%, depending on the diagnostic criteria and geographic location. The pathophysiology of this endocrinopathy is still unclear; however, the heterogeneity of its features within ethnic races, geographic location, and families suggest that environment and lifestyle are of prime importance.The purpose: The objective of this paper is to study the role of environmental factors in the polycystic ovary syndrome.Methodology and kind of study: It is a kind of Meta analysis study. By searching from foreign valid websites and literatures, the researches about the role of environmental factors in the polycystic ovary syndrome have reviewed.The results: Studies support that, long, constant exposure to environmental factors such as endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and advanced glycation end products (AGEs) from prenatal life to puberty may influence the predisposed genotype to reveal the PCOS phenotype. Also, prenatal androgenization – that is the other impact of (EDCs) and (AGEs) - may cause epigenetic alterations and, as a consequence, may induce the PCOS phenotype and led to adverse health effects up to the third generation. Moreover, EDCs and AGEs through adipogenesis, obesity, insulin resistance, hyperinsulinemia and so on can cause metabolic disruption and result in PCOS.Discussion and conclusion: The western diet and lifestyle can be a significant environmental source of these toxicants (EDCs and AGEs) that are potentially involved in the pathogenesis of PCOS. Extensive data from different scientific models, collected in recent years, have confirmed their negative role in the pathophysiology of PCOS and their negative epigenetic impact. Therefore, strategies and strong recommendations should be targeted to reduce human exposure to protect next generations from steadily rising adverse health effects.

کلیدواژه ها:

PCOS ، EDCs ، AGEs