Research

Hormonal

Genetic variants at the SHBG locus and multiple other loci (including GCKR, LHCGR, and UGT2B15) significantly influence circulating sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) concentrations, with effects that are often sex-differentiated.

Your SHBG levels are partly determined by your DNA, specifically variants near genes like SHBG, GCKR, and LHCGR. This genetic background influences how your body handles testosterone and estrogen. While you cannot change your genetics, this knowledge highlights why SHBG is a critical marker for metabolic health and hormone-sensitive cancer risk.

StrongSupportsVERY_HIGH confidence
We identified twelve genomic regions (SNPs) associated with circulating SHBG concentrations... These genes encompass multiple biologic pathways... We found evidence of sex-differentiated genetic influences on SHBG.
Andrea D. Coviello et al. · PLoS Genetics · 2012

Why this rating

Large-scale GWAS meta-analysis with validation cohorts (n > 28,000).

Source

A Genome-Wide Association Meta-Analysis of Circulating Sex Hormone–Binding Globulin Reveals Multiple Loci Implicated in Sex Steroid Hormone Regulation

Andrea D. Coviello et al. · PLoS Genetics · 2012

DOI 10.1371/journal.pgen.1002805

Meta-analysis · 16 studiesCited 255×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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