AI Summary
This study examines rare genetic changes that impact menopause timing in post-menopausal women, with a five times greater effect compared to common genetic variants. These genes also have implications for cancer risk.
The team first looked at variation in data from genetic sequencing of 106,973 post-menopausal female participants in the UK Biobank study. Researchers focused on rare types of genetic changes which cause a loss of the protein, and investigated their effect on the timing of menopause. The genetic changes studied are all rare in the population, however their influence on menopause is five times greater than the impact of any previously identified common genetic variant.