Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
Dan L. Duncan Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
Biomolecules. 2022 Oct 25;12(11):1554. doi: 10.3390/biom12111554.
Endometriosis is an estrogen-dependent inflammatory disease that develops in reproductive-aged women who experience pelvic pain and infertility. Even though endometriosis is not a new disease, its molecular etiology has not been clearly elucidated. Defects in the immune system might be one of the factors that promote endometriosis progression. For example, elevated levels of proinflammatory cytokines are associated with endometriosis. Interferon is one of the cytokines that is elevated in endometriotic tissues compared with normal endometrium. Therefore, high interferon levels play a crucial role in endometriosis progression. In addition to endometriosis, however, interferon has a critical role in endometrial function, particularly in the initiation and maintenance of pregnancy. Therefore, this review describes the double-edged sword of interferon signaling in normal endometrial function versus endometriosis progression and also discusses interferon targeting as a new nonhormonal therapy for endometriosis. This approach may increase the efficacy of endometriosis treatment and reduce the adverse effects associated with current hormonal therapy for this disease.
子宫内膜异位症是一种雌激素依赖性炎症性疾病，发生于经历盆腔疼痛和不孕的育龄妇女。尽管子宫内膜异位症并不是一种新疾病，但它的分子病因尚未明确。免疫系统缺陷可能是促进子宫内膜异位症进展的因素之一。例如，促炎细胞因子水平升高与子宫内膜异位症有关。与正常子宫内膜相比，干扰素是在子宫内膜异位组织中升高的细胞因子之一。因此，高干扰素水平在子宫内膜异位症进展中起着关键作用。然而，除了子宫内膜异位症之外，干扰素在子宫内膜功能中也起着关键作用，特别是在妊娠的启动和维持中。因此，本综述描述了干扰素信号在正常子宫内膜功能与子宫内膜异位症进展中的双刃剑作用，并讨论了干扰素靶向治疗作为子宫内膜异位症的一种新的非激素治疗方法。这种方法可能会提高子宫内膜异位症治疗的疗效，并降低与当前针对这种疾病的激素治疗相关的不良反应。
