A new Northwestern Medicine study in mice has identified a novel method to extend the healthspan of ovaries, potentially improving maintenance and preventing age-related changes in ovarian function. The findings, which will be published on September 16 in the journal GeroScience, suggest significant implications for developing treatments for ovarian cancer.
The research highlights that freezing eggs addresses only age-related infertility but not the loss of ovarian hormones. The study used Pirfenidone, a drug commonly used to treat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, to reduce ovarian scarring in mice. However, the researchers are working on identifying optimal drug targets for ovarian fibrosis and conducting clinical trials in women.
“This drug is not one that can be used in a clinical setting for this purpose because it has significant side effects, like liver toxicity, although we didn't see that in mice,” said Francesca Duncan, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “However, we demonstrated proof-of-concept: we can modulate ovarian fibrosis and improve outcomes. We are now actively working to find a safe and effective drug to do this in humans.”
In previous research, Duncan’s lab found that aging ovaries become excessively inflamed, fibrotic, and stiff—conditions favorable for cancer cell proliferation. Stiff ovaries also affect egg quality, contributing to declining fertility in women during their 30s and 40s.
In the current study, mice treated with medication to reduce ovarian scarring exhibited higher follicle numbers, improved ovulation, and maintained normal hormone levels. Duncan emphasized that while extending fertility is part of the study's goal, it is not the primary focus.
“We’re likely going to push the fertile window, but that is not the ultimate goal of the study,” Duncan said. “Not everyone is concerned about having children.”
The research aims to improve the ovarian environment so it can continue producing critical hormones later into a woman’s life. Decreased estrogen and progesterone levels accelerate bone loss and increase risks of osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease. Low hormone levels can also cause thinning vaginal walls leading to discomfort during sex or urinary issues as well as decreased cognitive function and mood.
“If you fix the ovarian environment,” Duncan stated, “you solve all the problems because you have follicles and eggs that can contribute to fertility and hormone production.”
The study titled "Systemic low‐dose anti‐fibrotic treatment attenuates ovarian aging in the mouse" was funded by the Global Consortium for Reproductive Longevity and Equality.