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Introduction: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with an increasing number of metabolic comorbidities. About 50% of PCOS patients are obese, and insulin resistance affects up to 70% of these women. The endocannabinoid system contributes to human energy homeostasis. CNR1 is a biological candidate for human obesity and related metabolic disorders. The aim of this study was to determine the relationships between CNR1 polymorphisms and anthropometric and metabolic parameters in PCOS women. Material and methods: 130 women diagnosed with PCOS according to the Rotterdam criteria were recruited. The control group consisted of 70 healthy women. Medical history was taken, and physical examination as well as assessment of anthropometric (body mass, height, waist and hip circumference, BMI, waist-to-hip ratio [WHR]) and metabolic parameters (glucose and insulin, the insulin resistance index HOMA, lipid profile) was carried out. Genetic studies to detect six CNR1 gene polymorphisms were performed. Results: The total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels in PCOS women carrying T/T genotype of rs2023239CNR1 polymorphism were higher than in those with C/T and C/C. There were no statistical differences in other metabolic parameters or in the value of BMI and WHR between the variants of rs2023239 CNR1 polymorphism. The other studied polymorphisms of the CNR1 gene were not associated with anthropometric or metabolic parameters in PCOS women. There were no differences in anthropometric or metabolic parameters between the variants of studied polymorphisms of the CNR1 gene in control women. Conclusions: On the basis of our study, it seems that CNR1 polymorphisms are not associated with obesity and metabolic disorders, including insulin resistance, in PCOS women.

The aim of this work was to evaluate whether the FokI and BsmI polymorphisms of the VDR gene are associated with anthropometric and biochemical features of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in a Caucasian population aged over 65, participants of the Polish PolSenior study. We performed the study on randomly selected subjects: 427 women and 454 men aged over 65. Measurements of anthropometric parameters were carried out and biochemical parameters were estimated using commercial kits. VDR polymorphisms (rs10735810, rs1544410) were genotyped by PCR and FRLP. The prevalence of BsmI genotypes was 50% Bb, 23% bb, 27% BB in women and 48% Bb, 20% bb, 32% BB in men. The prevalence of FokI was 48% Ff, 22% ff, 30% FF in women and 50% Ff, 18% ff, 32% FF in men. The women bearing the rare allele b differ in homeostatic model assessment (HOMA) (p < 0.049) from women bearing common allele B, and the men differ in insulin level (p < 0.047) and HOMA (p < 0.017). There were no significant differences in anthropometric or biochemical parameters between genotypes in FokI in female and male groups. The common allele B is connected with biochemical risk factors of CVD in older Caucasian men and women.

The risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in women increases with menopausal stage. Obesity with metabolic disorders is the most important risk factor for CVD. The incidence of this phenotype of obesity increases in postmenopausal women. The endocannabinoid system plays an important role in regulation of several metabolic pathways. The aim of this work was to investigate whether genetic variations in the cannabinoid receptor gene (CNR1) can affect cardiovascular risk factors (e.g. fat distribution, obesity, fasting glucose, lipid profile, blood pressure, and free androgen and estrogen indexes) in postmenopausal women.The rs806381, rs10485170, rs6454674, and rs2023239 polymorphisms of the CNR1 gene were genotyped in 384 randomly selected postmenopausal Polish women (aged 50-60) using the minisequencing technique.The rs806381, rs10485170, rs6454674, and rs2023239 polymorphisms were not significantly associated with anthropometric measures (waist circumference, carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, body mass index [BMI], total fat, glucose, insulin, fasting insulin resistance index [FIRI]). However, the rs2023239 polymorphism was associated with the free androgen index (p = 0.03).It seems that further genotyping of the endocannabinoid receptor gene cannot be used as a significant marker of predisposition to CVD in postmenopausal women, but it would be interesting to study this interrelation on a larger population of postmenopausal women.

Vitamin D co-regulates the synthesis of sex hormones. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine whether the presence of certain genotypes of the vitamin D receptor gene (VDR) is associated with the serum levels of sex hormones in the elderly Polish population.The rs10735810, rs1544410, rs7975232, and rs731236 polymorphisms of VDR, the serum levels of testosterone and estradiol, as well as free estrogen index (FEI) and free androgen index (FAI) were evaluated in 360 women and 400 men aged 65-90years selected from 5695 respondents of the PolSenior survey.Only the rs1544410 VDR polymorphism was associated with the serum levels of sex hormones. The prevalence of rs1544410 genotypes was 38% BB, 46% Bb, and 16% bb in women and 41% BB, 44% Bb, and 15% bb in men. In women the frequency of the B allele was p=0.61 and b allele q=0.39, while in men it was p=0.63 and q=0.37, respectively. We found significant differences in the serum testosterone level (p0.0004) and FAI (p0.0015) between the rs1544410 genotypes in women but not in men. Higher mean testosterone level and higher mean FAI were observed in women with a rare bb genotype in comparison to a common BB genotype.We hypothesize that in women the increase in VDR expression associated with a rare genotype of the rs1544410 polymorphism of this gene may be associated with an increase in testosterone and FAI levels.

The aim of this study was to determine whether genetic variation at the cannabinoid receptor-1 (CNR1) locus could have an effect on adiposity, fat distribution and obesity-related metabolic disorders in Polish postmenopausal women.The A3813G (rs12720071), G1422A (rs1049353), A4895G (rs806368) and rs806381, rs10485170, rs6454674 and rs2023239 single-nucleotide polymorphisms of CNR1 were genotyped in 348 randomly selected postmenopausal women aged 50-60 years recruited from the Wroclaw city population.CNR1 genotypes, anthropometric measures (body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC) and body fat distribution by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry) and metabolic parameters (glucose, lipid profile and Fasting Insulin Resistance Index for insulin resistance) were determined.The 3813G allele was not significantly associated with higher body mass, BMI, WC, total fat or fat percentage, but was associated with higher android fat deposit (2971.78±1655.08 vs 2472.64±1300.53, P=0.007) and percentage of android fat (37.59±8.45 vs 35.66±7.63, P=0.062). No associations for the G1422A, A4895G, rs806381, rs10485170, rs6454674 and rs2023239 variants were observed.There is an association of the variants of CNR1 with obesity-related phenotypes in Polish postmenopausal women. As cannabinoid receptor type 1 is a drug target for obesity, pharmacogenetic receptor gene analysis of obesity treatment by endocannabinoid blockade may be of interest to identify the best responders.