This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing theresources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject andinvestigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source,and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed isfor the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator.As a first step towards understanding the genetic controls of menopause, this proposed pilot and feasiility study will estimate the heritability of the age of menopause and hot flashes, and pave the way for subsequent studies that will eventually identify the genes. This pilot project is designed as an observational cohort study of sister pairs. The participants are drawn from an existing cohort of over 1700 sisters who are participating in a genetic study of bone mass. They are normal, healthy women between ages 20 and 50, who already have a genome scan performed on their DNA, providing genetic markers for subsequent linkage analyses. In this pilot study, about 100 pairs of sisters will be recruited; priority will be given to those closer to menopause. They will use diaries for up to one year to record their menstrual cycles so the onset of menopause can be documented accurately. They will also record the occurrence of hot flashes in order to give more precise measurements of the frequency and severity. Heritabilities will be estimated for the age of onset and symptoms of menopause. The study will also work out the logistics of drawing and storing serum samples on the third and 24th day of a woman's cycle for future measurements of sex hormone levels. The heritability estimates will be used for planning a sib-pair linkage study on the full cohort.
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