The Role of Asprosin in Females in the Context of Fertility – an Exploratory Study

Background: Asprosin is a relatively recently discovered glucogenic adipokine secreted during fasting that plays an important role in various biochemical processes in the body, including those connected with obesity and insulin resistance. The aim of this exploratory study was to investigate the associations between selected hormonal, anthropometric, and lifestyle-related parameters and serum asprosin concentration. As studies concerning fertility and asprosin have so far been limited to men–with its role in females largely unexplored. The direction of the exploration was pointed towards possible connections with female fertility. Methods: The case-control study group included 56 women of reproductive age (25–42 years), patients of the Reproductive Health Clinic and the Clinic of Endocrinology, Diabetology, and Internal Medicine of Medical University of Białystok, Poland. The levels of selected hormones, including anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), estradiol, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), and testosterone; body composition parameters; and a lifestyle parameter–night fasting duration–were assessed to test their associations with serum asprosin concentration. Results: A weak negative correlation was found between AMH level and serum asprosin concentration, suggesting a potential link between asprosin and ovarian reserve. In addition, a moderate positive correlation was found between the percentage of total body water (TBW) and serum asprosin concentration. No significant associations were observed between the levels of the other tested hormones and serum asprosin concentration, or between body composition parameters or night fasting duration, and serum asprosin concentration. The multivariate model designed in the study shows that AMH, TBW, and night fasting duration explain 23.4% of asprosin variability. Conclusions: Although the nature of the study is explorative, the findings indicate that the role of asprosin in the female population–particularly its role in fertility–requires further research. Not only is the number of available studies on asprosin insufficient, but the results of this study partly contradict what is known about the hormone from previous studies, largely performed in men. In addition, the results of this study suggest that asprosin may indeed be involved in mechanisms related to female fertility, particularly those connected with ovarian reserve. Nevertheless, studies performed in larger, more homogeneous populations are necessary to confirm the role of asprosin in women, including its associations with female fertility.