Abstract
Menopause is defined as the point in time in which a woman has not had her period for at least 12 months. It is a process strictly correlated with aging (mean age: 48.8y) and characterized by critical endocrine/neuroendocrine dysregulations, especially regarding estrogen, progesterone and FSH hormone levels. Consequently, post-menopausal women are more susceptible to urogenital conditions, cardiovascular outcomes, osteoporosis and other clinical conditions. In this work, we describe the differences in metabolite levels between pre- and post-menopausal women. To minimize the influence of age on metabolite concentrations, we performed the analysis on study participants in a narrow age range (49-52y, 342 and 312 pre- and post-menopausal women). In post-menopausal women, we found significantly higher levels of glutamate and acetylcarnitine, two compounds extensively described to play a role in the neurotransmission process hence potentially suggesting neurological outcomes. In addition, the lower ratio between long chain acylcarnitines and free carnitine found in post-menopausal women suggested an impairment on the expression of CPT1, the rate-limiting enzyme for fatty acid oxidation, with potential consequences to the cardiovascular system. Questionnaire-based data have shown significantly higher Framingham Risk Score (FRS) in the post-menopausal group, an index used to estimate cardiovascular risk. Moreover, post-menopausal women have also reported to have “trouble sleeping nearly every night” more frequently than the pre-menopausal group (81% against 73%). These results contribute to the understanding of the metabolic imbalances occurring at this stage of life and their potential impact on health. Ultimately, this study may drive future validation studies and reveal possible targets for future therapeutic protocols.