Is polycystic ovary syndrome a sexual conflict? A review

Several studies have attempted to explain the high overall prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome among women worldwide (about 4-10%) despite its link to subfertile phenotypes. For this reason, it is considered an evolutionary paradox. In this review, we show that several genetic loci associated with the disease differently modulate the reproductive parameters of men and women. This observation suggests that such genetic variants lead to opposite effects in the two sexes in reproductive success. Intralocus sexual conflict as a cause of the persistence polycystic ovary syndrome genotypes among humans is supported.