Fecundity in Populations with Different Progesterone Profiles

不同黄体酮水平的人群的生育力

• 批准号: 9506107
• 负责人: Virginia Vitzthum
• 金额: $ 15.62万
• 依托单位: University of California-Riverside
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 1995
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1995-09-01 至 1999-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9506107&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Fecundity; Populations; Different; Progesterone; Profiles

Recently published data demonstrate that different populations have varying levels of salivary progesterone (P), but researchers are uncertain as to its significance. Among less well-nourished and more stressed populations, P levels are chronically lower than among healthy Western controls. Some reproductive ecologists have suggested that this variability represents different levels of ovarian function, but other demographers counter that women living in such marginal conditions exhibit high fertility and hence must remain fecund. There has been no direct measures of the relationship between interpopulational differences in fecundity (the capacity to conceive) and interpopulational variability in such reproductive steroids that would clearly support either of these assertions. Resolving this dispute is essential before considering either the implications or causes of interpopulaitonal variability in salivary P. This research project by two younger women researchers proposes to examine the following related three hypotheses: 1) there are significant interpopulational differences in chronic levels of P; 2) women in more stressful environments have lower levels of P than women living in better conditions; and 3) these interpopulational differences do not translate into differences in fecundity and fertility. To test these hypotheses, the investigators have chosen for study a traditional Quechua-speaking population in rural Norte de Potosi, Bolivia, who live in dispersed communities and rely almost exclusively upon agriculture and herding for subsistence. They do not attempt to limit the number of births and venereal diseases are not common. Women will be sampled longitudinally for levels of salivary P, and concurrent conceptions will be detected using urinary indicators of human chorionic gonadotropin. Demographic information will also be collected related to fertility determinants. The study is expected to help resolve the outstanding and much-debated issue between demographers and reproductive ecologists described above - specifically, whether recorded physiological indicators of variable ovarian function reflect differences in fecundity and fertility.

最近公布的数据表明，不同人群的唾液孕酮(P)水平不同，但研究人员不确定其重要性。在营养不良和压力较大的人群中，磷水平长期低于健康的西方对照组。一些生殖生态学家提出，这种差异代表了卵巢功能的不同水平，但其他人口学家反驳说，生活在这种边缘条件下的女性表现出高生育率，因此必须保持生育能力。没有直接衡量种群间生育力差异(受孕能力)和种群间生殖类固醇变异性之间的关系，这显然支持这两种说法中的任何一种。在考虑唾液磷的人口间差异的含义或原因之前，解决这一争议是至关重要的。这项由两名年轻女性研究人员开展的研究项目建议检验以下三个相关假设：1)长期磷水平在人口间存在显著差异；2)生活在压力较大环境中的女性的磷水平低于生活在较好条件下的女性；以及3)这些人口间差异不会转化为生育力和生育力的差异。为了验证这些假设，研究人员选择了玻利维亚北部波托西农村地区的一个传统的盖丘亚语人口作为研究对象，他们生活在分散的社区，几乎完全依赖农业和牧业维持生计。他们不试图限制出生人数，性病也不常见。女性将接受唾液P水平的纵向采样，并将使用尿液中人绒毛膜促性腺激素的指示剂检测同时怀孕的情况。还将收集与生育率决定因素有关的人口统计信息。这项研究有望帮助解决上述人口学家和生殖生态学家之间悬而未决且争论不休的问题--具体地说，记录的卵巢功能变量的生理指标是否反映了生育力和生育力的差异。