Hansen Christopher J, Rogers Jackson H, Brown Alexus J, Boatwright Naoko, Siricilla Shajila, O'Brien Christine M, Panja Sourav, Nichols Cameron M, Devanathan Kanchana, Hardy Benjamin M, Does Mark D, Anderson Adam W, Paria Bibhash C, Mahadevan-Jansen Anita, Reese Jeff, Herington Jennifer L
Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
Sci Adv. 2024 Dec 20;10(51):eadr3530. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adr3530. Epub 2024 Dec 18.
The orientation and function of smooth muscle in the cervix may contribute to the important biomechanical properties that change during pregnancy. Thus, this study examined the three-dimensional structure, smooth muscle phenotype, and mechanical and contractile functions of the upper and lower cervix of nongravid (not pregnant) and gravid (pregnant) mice. In gravid cervix, we uncovered region-specific changes in the structure and organization of fiber tracts. We also detected a greater proportion of contractile smooth muscle cells (SMCs), but an equal proportion of synthetic SMCs, in the upper versus lower cervix. Furthermore, we revealed that the lower cervix had infrequent spontaneous contractions, distension had a minimal effect on contractility, and the upper cervix had forceful contractions in response to labor-inducing agents (oxytocin and prostaglandin E). These findings identify regional differences in cervix contractility related to contractile SMC content and fiber organization, which could be targeted with diagnostic technologies and for therapeutic intervention.
子宫颈平滑肌的方向和功能可能有助于在妊娠期间发生变化的重要生物力学特性。因此，本研究检查了未妊娠和妊娠小鼠子宫颈上下部的三维结构、平滑肌表型以及机械和收缩功能。在妊娠子宫颈中，我们发现纤维束的结构和组织存在区域特异性变化。我们还检测到，与子宫颈下部相比，子宫颈上部收缩性平滑肌细胞（SMC）的比例更高，但合成型SMC的比例相等。此外，我们发现子宫颈下部很少有自发收缩，扩张对收缩性的影响最小，而子宫颈上部对引产剂（催产素和前列腺素E）有强烈收缩反应。这些发现确定了与收缩性SMC含量和纤维组织相关的子宫颈收缩性区域差异，这可以作为诊断技术和治疗干预的靶点。
