Heritability of age at natural menopause in the Framingham Heart Study

Abstract

Background: Twin registries and family history studies provide evidence that genetic factors contribute to the onset of menopause, but heritability estimates in population-based samples are limited. We sought to estimate heritability of age at natural menopause in women participating in the multigenerational Framingham Heart Study, a community-based epidemiological study.

Methods: A total of 1500 original cohort and 932 offspring cohort women from 1296 extended families reported a natural menopause defined as the natural cessation of menses for 1 yr or more. Correlation coefficients were calculated using family correlations in Statistical Applications for Genetic Epidemiology for mother-daughter, sister-sister, and aunt-niece pairs. Heritability was estimated using variance-components methods in the Sequential Oligogenic Linkage Analysis Routines (SOLAR) computer package. Covariates in the multivariable models included generation, number of cigarettes smoked, body mass index, and parity.

Results: The mean age at natural menopause was 49.1 and 49.4 yr in original cohort and offspring women, respectively. The multivariable-adjusted correlation coefficients for mother-daughter, sister-sister, and aunt-niece pairs were 0.21, 0.22, and 0.12, respectively. The crude and multivariable-adjusted heritability estimates for age at natural menopause were 0.49 (0.37, 0.61) and 0.52 (0.35, 0.69).

Conclusions: Our data suggest that at least 50% of the interindividual variability in menopausal age appears to be attributable to genetic effects.