Dataset Information

Does the sex of one's co-twin affect height and BMI in adulthood? A study of dizygotic adult twins from 31 cohorts.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The comparison of traits in twins from opposite-sex (OS) and same-sex (SS) dizygotic twin pairs is considered a proxy measure of prenatal hormone exposure. To examine possible prenatal hormonal influences on anthropometric traits, we compared mean height, body mass index (BMI), and the prevalence of being overweight or obese between men and women from OS and SS dizygotic twin pairs.

Methods

The data were derived from the COllaborative project of Development of Anthropometrical measures in Twins (CODATwins) database, and included 68,494 SS and 53,808 OS dizygotic twin individuals above the age of 20 years from 31 twin cohorts representing 19 countries. Zygosity was determined by questionnaires or DNA genotyping depending on the study. Multiple regression and logistic regression models adjusted for cohort, age, and birth year with the twin type as a predictor were carried out to compare height and BMI in twins from OS pairs with those from SS pairs and to calculate the adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for being overweight or obese.

Results

OS females were, on average, 0.31 cm (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.20, 0.41) taller than SS females. OS males were also, on average, taller than SS males, but this difference was only 0.14 cm (95% CI 0.02, 0.27). Mean BMI and the prevalence of overweight or obesity did not differ between males and females from SS and OS twin pairs. The statistically significant differences between OS and SS twins for height were small and appeared to reflect our large sample size rather than meaningful differences of public health relevance.

Conclusions

We found no evidence to support the hypothesis that prenatal hormonal exposure or postnatal socialization (i.e., having grown up with a twin of the opposite sex) has a major impact on height and BMI in adulthood.

SUBMITTER: Bogl LH

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5408365 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Does the sex of one's co-twin affect height and BMI in adulthood? A study of dizygotic adult twins from 31 cohorts.

Bogl Leonie H LH Jelenkovic Aline A Vuoksimaa Eero E Ahrenfeldt Linda L Pietiläinen Kirsi H KH Stazi Maria A MA Fagnani Corrado C D'Ippolito Cristina C Hur Yoon-Mi YM Jeong Hoe-Uk HU Silberg Judy L JL Eaves Lindon J LJ Maes Hermine H HH Bayasgalan Gombojav G Narandalai Danshiitsoodol D Cutler Tessa L TL Kandler Christian C Jang Kerry L KL Christensen Kaare K Skytthe Axel A Kyvik Kirsten O KO Cozen Wendy W Hwang Amie E AE Mack Thomas M TM Derom Catherine A CA Vlietinck Robert F RF Nelson Tracy L TL Whitfield Keith E KE Corley Robin P RP Huibregtse Brooke M BM McAdams Tom A TA Eley Thalia C TC Gregory Alice M AM Krueger Robert F RF McGue Matt M Pahlen Shandell S Willemsen Gonneke G Bartels Meike M van Beijsterveldt Toos C E M TCEM Pang Zengchang Z Tan Qihua Q Zhang Dongfeng D Martin Nicholas G NG Medland Sarah E SE Montgomery Grant W GW Hjelmborg Jacob V B JVB Rebato Esther E Swan Gary E GE Krasnow Ruth R Busjahn Andreas A Lichtenstein Paul P Öncel Sevgi Y SY Aliev Fazil F Baker Laura A LA Tuvblad Catherine C Siribaddana Sisira H SH Hotopf Matthew M Sumathipala Athula A Rijsdijk Fruhling F Magnusson Patrik K E PKE Pedersen Nancy L NL Aslan Anna K Dahl AKD Ordoñana Juan R JR Sánchez-Romera Juan F JF Colodro-Conde Lucia L Duncan Glen E GE Buchwald Dedra D Tarnoki Adam D AD Tarnoki David L DL Yokoyama Yoshie Y Hopper John L JL Loos Ruth J F RJF Boomsma Dorret I DI Sørensen Thorkild I A TIA Silventoinen Karri K Kaprio Jaakko J

Biology of sex differences 20170427

<h4>Background</h4>The comparison of traits in twins from opposite-sex (OS) and same-sex (SS) dizygotic twin pairs is considered a proxy measure of prenatal hormone exposure. To examine possible prenatal hormonal influences on anthropometric traits, we compared mean height, body mass index (BMI), and the prevalence of being overweight or obese between men and women from OS and SS dizygotic twin pairs.<h4>Methods</h4>The data were derived from the COllaborative project of Development of Anthropom ...[more]

PMID: 28465822

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Project description:Study questionDoes having a male co-twin influence the female twin's reproductive outcomes?Summary answerWomen with a male co-twin had the same chances of being pregnant and having children compared to same-sex twin pairs.What is known alreadyAccording to the twin testosterone transfer (TTT) hypothesis, in an opposite-sex twin pregnancy, testosterone transfer from the male to the female co-twin occurs. A large body of literature supports the negative impact of prenatal testosterone exposure on female's reproductive health in animal models; however, evidence from human studies remains controversial.Study design, size, durationThis cohort study included all dizygotic female twins in the Aberdeen Maternity and Neonatal Databank (Scotland) born before 1 January 1979. The 317 eligible women were followed up for 40 years for any pregnancies and the outcome of those pregnancies recorded in the same database.Participants/materials, setting, methodsFertility outcomes (number of pregnancies, number of livebirths and age at first pregnancy) were compared between women with a male co-twin (exposed group, n = 151) and those with a female co-twin (unexposed group, n = 166). Population averaged models were used to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95% CI for all outcomes with adjusting for potential confounders.Main results and the role of chanceThere were no differences in chances of having pregnancies (adj. OR 1.33; 95% CI 0.72, 2.45) and livebirths (adj. OR 1.22; 95% CI 0.68, 2.18) between women from same-sex and opposite-sex twin pairs. Women with a male co-twin were more likely to smoke during pregnancy and, in the unadjusted model, were younger at their first pregnancy (OR 2.13; 95% CI 1.21, 3.75). After adjusting for confounding variables (year of birth and smoking status) the latter finding was no longer significant (OR 1.67; 95% CI 0.90, 3.20).Limitations, reasons for cautionThe dataset was relatively small. For women without a pregnancy recorded in the databank, we assumed that they had not been pregnant.Wider implications of the findingsDespite the evidence from animal studies concerning the adverse effects of prenatal testosterone exposure on female health, our results do not support the TTT hypothesis. The finding that women with a male co-twin are more likely to smoke during pregnancy highlights the importance of considering post-socialisation and social effects in twin studies.Study funding/competing interest(s)European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie project PROTECTED (grant agreement No. 722634) and FREIA project (grant agreement No. 825100). No competing interests.Trial registration numberN/A.

Dataset Information

Does the sex of one's co-twin affect height and BMI in adulthood? A study of dizygotic adult twins from 31 cohorts.

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Does the sex of one's co-twin affect height and BMI in adulthood? A study of dizygotic adult twins from 31 cohorts.

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