A widely used antimalarial drug could help alleviate a leading cause of infertility in women, early laboratory results suggest.
Artemisinin, a traditional Chinese herbal therapy, has long been shown to rapidly reduce parasites in the blood of malaria patients.
But an animal study now suggests that the treatment could also help alleviate polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
Tests on mice and rats by researchers in China showed that it could reduce the amount of the hormone androgen, produced in the ovaries, by attacking a crucial enzyme in androgen production.
Experts today called the discovery “promising” but warned that more research was vital to determine the long-term effects of the treatment.
Believed to affect approximately one in 10 women worldwide, polycystic ovary syndrome has gained importance in recent years. Spice Girl-turned-fashion mogul Victoria Beckham spoke out in the early 2000s about her struggle to conceive with polycystic ovary syndrome.
Believed to affect approximately one in 10 women worldwide, polycystic ovary syndrome has gained importance in recent years.
Spice Girl-turned-fashion mogul Victoria Beckham spoke openly in the early 2000s about her struggle to conceive with PCOS.
In 2016, Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley also revealed that the condition’s effects on her complexion made her “so self-conscious” that her sense of confidence was “in tatters.”
The exact cause of PCOS is unknown, but it is often hereditary.
It is found in those who produce higher amounts of testosterone and androgens than average.
The condition causes cysts to develop on the ovaries, causing a wide range of hormonal symptoms and weight gain.
The researchers, from Fudan University, divided four-week-old female mice and rats into two groups.
One was injected with DHEA, a hormone produced by the body’s adrenal glands that reflects PCOS, over the course of two weeks.
Both groups were then treated with artemether (ATM), a type of artemisinin.
The scientists discovered that the compound targeted CYP11A1, a crucial enzyme in androgen production.
It also improved LONP1, an enzyme that breaks down proteins, suppressing androgen production.
Writing in the diary, ScienceThe experts also said that metabolic tests in mice showed that ATM had “no effect” on body weight, fat mass, lean mass or even glucose tolerance.
They added: “This discovery sheds light on a previously unknown interaction between LONP1 and CYP11A1 enhanced by artemisinins.”
In 2016, Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley also revealed that the condition’s effects on her complexion made her “so self-conscious” that her sense of confidence was “in tatters.”
Elisabet Stener-Victorin, an expert in reproductive endocrinology at the Karolinska Institutet, who was not involved in the research, said: “Although more studies will be needed to fully understand the long-term effects and optimize dosing strategies to maximize therapeutic results, however , the discovery of artemisinins as effective remedies for PCOS represents a promising new approach for the development of targeted therapies that will potentially change the landscape of PCOS treatment.’
This comes as scientists have repeatedly warned that artemisinin resistance is spreading rapidly around the world.
Artemisinin damages malaria parasite proteins that kill human cells.
But the malaria parasite, transmitted by mosquitoes, has developed a way to cope with the damage.