Possible mechanism for preterm labor associated with bacterial infection. I: Stimulation of phosphoinositide metabolism by endotoxin in endometrial fibroblasts.

Growing evidence suggests an association between intra-amniotic infection and premature initiation of parturition. We recently demonstrated that some factor(s) including endotoxin produced by the organism stimulates endogenous phospholipase A2 resulting in liberation of arachidonic acid and prostaglandin formation (Arch. Gynecol. Obstet. 244: 1-6 (1988). The studies presented in this report were designated to evaluate the mechanism for endotoxin to stimulate phospholipase A2 using human endometrial fibroblasts. Exposure of the fibroblasts to endotoxin from Escherichia coli in the presence of [32P] phosphate increased 32P-labeling of phosphatidic acid (PA) and phosphatidyl-inositol (PI) in a dose-dependent and a time-dependent manners. The PA labeling occurred without a measurable lag time. These findings demonstrate that the endotoxin stimulates phosphoinositide metabolism in human endometrial fibroblasts by a receptor-mediated mechanism. Membrane phosphoinositide turnover stimulated by endotoxin results in cytosolic Ca2+ increment, liberation of arachidonic acid, which may be involved in the initiation of parturition.