Anti‐Müllerian hormone concentration is associated with central adiposity and reproductive hormones in expectant fathers

• Published in: Clinical endocrinology (Oxford) Vol. 97; no. 5; pp. 634 - 642
• Main Authors: Hadlow, Narelle C., Brown, Suzanne J., Lim, Ee Mun, Prentice, David, Pettigrew, Simone, Cronin, Sophie L., Prescott, Susan L., Silva, Desiree, Yeap, Bu B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01-11-2022; John Wiley and Sons Inc
• Subjects: Adipose tissue; Adiposity; Adult; Age; AMH; Anti-Mullerian Hormone; Biomarkers; BMI; Body mass index; Fathers; Female; Follicle Stimulating Hormone; FSH; Globulins; Humans; Luteinizing Hormone; Male; men; Metabolism; Obesity; Obesity, Abdominal; Original; ORIGINS Project; Pregnancy; Prospective Studies; Reproductive health; Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin; Sex hormones; Testosterone; waist circumference; Young Adult; testosterone; waist circumference; men; FSH; AMH; ORIGINS Project; BMI
• ISSN: 0300-0664; 1365-2265
• DOI: 10.1111/cen.14725

Summary
Objective
The role of the anti‐Müllerian hormone (AMH) as an indicator of physical and reproductive health in men is unclear. We assessed the relationships between AMH and follicle‐stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), testosterone, and metabolic parameters, in a cohort of expectant fathers.
Design
ORIGINS Project prospective cohort study.
Setting
Community‐dwelling men.
Participants
Partners of pregnant women attending antenatal appointments.
Main Outcome Measures
Serum AMH, FSH, LH, testosterone, and metabolic parameters.
Results
In 485 expectant fathers, median age 33 years, median AMH was 40 pmol/L (quartiles 29, 56). AMH was inversely correlated with FSH, age, and body mass index (BMI) (correlation coefficients: −.32, −.24, and −.17 respectively). The age association was nonlinear, with peak AMH between 20 and 30 years, a decline thereafter, and somewhat steady levels after 45 years. The inverse association of AMH with FSH was log‐linear and independent of age and BMI (β: −.07, SE: 0.01, p < .001). AMH was inversely correlated with waist circumference and directly associated with sex hormone‐binding globulin. Testosterone was moderately correlated with AMH (correlation coefficient: .09, β: .011, SE: 0.004, p = .014): this association was mediated by an inverse relationship with BMI (mediated proportion 0.49, p < .001).
Conclusions
In reproductively active men, lower AMH is a biomarker for advancing age, and for poorer metabolic and reproductive health. The inverse association between AMH and FSH is independent of age and BMI, whereas the association of AMH and testosterone is mediated via BMI. The utility of AMH to predict reproductive and cardiometabolic outcomes in men warrants further investigation.