Metabolomics reveals reduction of metabolic oxidation in women with polycystic ovary syndrome after pioglitazone-flutamide-metformin polytherapy

PLoS One. 2011;6(12):e29052. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0029052. Epub 2011 Dec 16.

Abstract

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a variable disorder characterized by a broad spectrum of anomalies, including hyperandrogenemia, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, body adiposity, low-grade inflammation and increased cardiovascular disease risks. Recently, a new polytherapy consisting of low-dose flutamide, metformin and pioglitazone in combination with an estro-progestagen resulted in the regulation of endocrine clinical markers in young and non-obese PCOS women. However, the metabolic processes involved in this phenotypic amelioration remain unidentified. In this work, we used NMR and MS-based untargeted metabolomics to study serum samples of young non-obese PCOS women prior to and at the end of a 30 months polytherapy receiving low-dose flutamide, metformin and pioglitazone in combination with an estro-progestagen. Our results reveal that the treatment decreased the levels of oxidized LDL particles in serum, as well as downstream metabolic oxidation products of LDL particles such as 9- and 13-HODE, azelaic acid and glutaric acid. In contrast, the radiuses of small dense LDL and large HDL particles were substantially increased after the treatment. Clinical and endocrine-metabolic markers were also monitored, showing that the level of HDL cholesterol was increased after the treatment, whereas the level of androgens and the carotid intima-media thickness were reduced. Significantly, the abundance of azelaic acid and the carotid intima-media thickness resulted in a high degree of correlation. Altogether, our results reveal that this new polytherapy markedly reverts the oxidant status of untreated PCOS women, and potentially improves the pro-atherosclerosis condition in these patients.

Publication types

  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Abdominal Fat / drug effects
  • Abdominal Fat / metabolism
  • Biomarkers / metabolism
  • Carotid Intima-Media Thickness
  • Chromatography, Gas
  • Chromatography, Liquid
  • Dicarboxylic Acids / blood
  • Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
  • Drug Therapy, Combination
  • Female
  • Flutamide / administration & dosage
  • Flutamide / pharmacology
  • Flutamide / therapeutic use*
  • Health
  • Humans
  • Linoleic Acid / chemistry
  • Linoleic Acid / metabolism
  • Lipoproteins / metabolism
  • Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
  • Metabolomics / methods*
  • Metformin / administration & dosage
  • Metformin / pharmacology
  • Metformin / therapeutic use*
  • Multivariate Analysis
  • Oxidation-Reduction / drug effects
  • Pioglitazone
  • Polycystic Ovary Syndrome / blood
  • Polycystic Ovary Syndrome / drug therapy*
  • Polycystic Ovary Syndrome / metabolism
  • Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization
  • Thiazolidinediones / administration & dosage
  • Thiazolidinediones / pharmacology
  • Thiazolidinediones / therapeutic use*
  • Young Adult

Substances

  • Biomarkers
  • Dicarboxylic Acids
  • Lipoproteins
  • Thiazolidinediones
  • Flutamide
  • Metformin
  • Linoleic Acid
  • azelaic acid
  • Pioglitazone