Menopause Certain gene variants are usually the cause of hot flashes

Night sweats and hot flashes can be related to the genes
Many menopausal women suffer from hot flashes and so-called night sweats. However, there is also a significant minority of women who are not affected by such symptoms. Researchers are now investigating if genes influence which women experience hot flashes.

The researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) found evidence that certain gene variants affect a receptor in the brain, which then regulates the release of estrogen. Women with these gene variants are more prone to hot flashes and night sweats. The American doctors now published a press release on the results of their study.

Many menopausal women suffer from hot flashes. Physicians found that certain gene variants are related to the occurrence of hot flashes and night sweats. (Image: britta60 / fotolia.com)

So far, there have been no studies on a combination of hot flashes and gene variants
The results may eventually lead to new ways of treatment. So it would be possible to relieve the hot flashes. Previous studies had not focused on how variants of female genes can be associated with hot flashes, explains author Dr. Carolyn Crandall from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

In the menopause, more than 70 percent of women suffer from hot flashes
More than 70 percent of women experience hot flashes and suffer from so-called night sweats. These conditions are known as vasomotor symptoms for menopause, explain the doctors. Increased BMI, lower education, smoking, anxiety and depression are also associated with an increased risk of frequent vasomotor symptoms. A genetic link to these symptoms has remained unclear so far, the experts add.

Physicians analyze data from 17,695 postmenopausal women
The study investigated the common genetic variants of the entire human genome. This observation should uncover a link between gene variations and observed traits (in this case hot flashes and night sweats), the researchers explain. For this, the experts examined the data of 17,695 postmenopausal women aged 50 to 79 years. They had taken part in the so-called ö, da Women's Health Initiative, DNA samples and information on hot flashes and night sweats, the researchers say. The physicians examined more than eleven million gene variants. These are also referred to as single nucleotide polymorphisms.

Fourteen gene variants are associated with the occurrence of hot flashes
The physicians found that fourteen of these variants were associated with the experience of hot flashes. All of them were located on chromosome 4. The gene variants are located in the part of chromosome 4, which codes for the tachykinin receptor 3, explain the experts. The receptor is located in the brain and reacts there with the nerve fibers. These regulate the release of the hormone estrogen. For example, women with mutations in the tachykinin receptor 3 gene are infertile. This is the first study linking the variants of the tachykinin receptor 3 gene to the occurrence of hot flashes, the researchers add.

Further research is needed
It is still unclear how different environmental factors affect the results, Dr. Crandall. Also, some rare gene variants could affect the hot flashes. The results of the current study will be confirmed in future studies. This could help physicians understand how they can better influence hot flashes, adds the author. (As)