Evaluating the relationship between circulating osteoprotegerin levels and bone mineral density in BRCA mutation carriers
Description: Women who inherit a deleterious mutation in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 tumor suppressor genes face a high lifetime risk of breast and ovarian cancer. Recent studies have reported these women also face elevated rates of bone disease (i.e. osteopenia and osteoporosis). Women who are BRCA mutation carriers may be biologically at risk for skeletal bone loss, as endogenous osteoprotegerin (OPG) levels are downregulated specifically in this population, and OPG is critical for conserving bone strength. This project will cross-sectionally evaluate the association between circulating OPG levels and bone mineral density among BRCA mutation carriers. Bone mineral density will be assessed at three anatomical locations: the lumbar spine, total hip, and femoral neck. This work will be the first to assess how depression of OPG is a determinant of poor skeletal health among BRCA mutation carriers and will provide critical insight into the mechanisms behind bone loss in this population. This project will also investigate OPG as a biomarker of bone loss among BRCA mutation carriers. These findings may be an important gateway to using OPG measurements for prescribing targeted interventions in clinic to promote bone health in this population.
Amount: CA$5,000
Funding type: fellowship
Funder scheme: Undergraduate: Summer Studentship Award - Institute Community Support
Start date: 2019-05-01
End date: 2019-08-31
Investigator: Elizabeth Hall
Institution: Women's College Hospital (Toronto)
Subfield: Orthopedics and Sports Medicine
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Funded outputs count: 0
Funder award ID: 164575_1
OpenAlex ID: G4029384686