First Comprehensive Atlas of Female Reproductive Aging Reveals Asynchronous Transformations Across Organs Using Advanced Artificial Intelligence

Barcelona Supercomputing Center uses AI to show that female organs age at different rates during menopause, identifying new blood biomarkers for health monitoring.

By: AXL Media

Published: Apr 30, 2026, 8:14 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from EurekAlert!

Redefining Menopause as a Multidimensional Physiological Transition

Menopause has historically been treated as a monolithic decline in ovarian function, yet new data suggests it is a far more complex and uneven reorganization of the entire female body. Despite affecting half the global population, the molecular impact of this transition across various organs has remained largely understudied in clinical practice. Researchers at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC-CNS) have now published the first large-scale atlas of female reproductive aging in Nature Aging, providing a detailed look at how health is impacted during this stage. The work emphasizes that menopause is not merely an end to reproduction but a turning point that fundamentally alters the biological landscape of multiple tissues.

Deploying Supercomputing Power to Map Biological Trajectories

To reconstruct the aging process, the research team integrated over 1,100 tissue images and analyzed the gene expressions of 304 women between the ages of 20 and 70. Leveraging the deep learning capabilities of the MareNostrum 5 supercomputer, the study examined seven distinct organs, including the uterus, ovaries, vagina, cervix, breasts, and Fallopian tubes. This multimodal approach allowed scientists to identify both visible changes in physical tissue and the underlying molecular shifts that precede them. According to Marta Melé, leader of the Transcriptomics and Functional Genomics group at BSC, the supercomputing resources were essential in identifying the specific genes driving these profound systemic changes.

Uncovering the Asynchronous Nature of Organ Maturation and Decay

One of the most striking findings of the study is that female reproductive organs do not age in a uniform or linear fashion. While the ovaries and vagina exhibit a progressive aging process that begins years before the onset of menopause, the uterus undergoes a much more abrupt and localized transformation during the transition itself. The analysis further reveals that even within a single organ, different tissues—such as the uterine muscle versus the mucosa—show varying levels of sensitivity to hormonal shifts. This discovery challenges the previous medical assumption of a synchronized decline, suggesting instead that each component of the reproductive system follows its own unique aging clock.