van der Linden P J, de Goeij A F, Dunselman G A, Erkens H W, Evers J L
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Academisch, Ziekenhuis Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Fertil Steril. 1995 Jun;63(6):1210-6. doi: 10.1016/s0015-0282(16)57599-2.
To detect cadherin and integrin expression in biopsies of endometrium in the phases of the cycle. Cell adhesion molecules may be involved in endometrial shedding during menstruation and attachment of shed endometrial tissue to the peritoneal lining in endometriosis patients.
An immunohistochemical study on fresh frozen sections.
Tertiary-care university medical center.
Sixteen patients undergoing monitoring of their cycle as part of a subfertility workup. All patients had regular and ovulatory cycles.
Endometrium samples were obtained at well-defined phases of the cycle. Simultaneously, blood samples were collected for E2 and P assay.
The expression of cell adhesion molecules, including E- and P-cadherin and the integrins alpha 2 beta 1, alpha 3 beta 1, alpha 4 beta 1, alpha 5 beta 1, and alpha 6 beta 1, and the expression of estrogen receptor (ER) and P receptor (PR).
E- and P-cadherin expression was demonstrated in all endometrium samples. Integrins alpha 3 beta 1, alpha 4 beta 1, alpha 5 beta 1, and alpha 6 beta 1 were detected in samples from all cycle phases, whereas integrin alpha 2 beta 1 was not detected in midluteal samples. The serum levels of E2 were 24.7 pg/mL (range: 10.9 to 35.4 pg/mL) in the early follicular phase and 190.7 pg/mL (range: 152.5 to 256.1 pg/mL) in the preovulatory phase (conversion factor to SI unit, 3.671). Serum P was 13.7 ng/mL (range: 10.3 to 16.7 ng/mL) in the midluteal phase and 6.4 ng/mL (range: 1.2 to 13.7 ng/mL) in the premenstrual phase (conversion factor to SI unit, 3.180). The portion of cells staining for ER and PR was at a maximum during the preovulatory phase, both for epithelial and stromal cells.
E- and P-cadherin expression was detected in all samples and did not vary throughout the menstrual cycle. If their expression is involved functionally in the cyclic menstrual shedding, the loss of expression is limited to a short period of time. Of the beta 1 integrins, only alpha 2 beta 1 expression was modulated during the menstrual cycle and found to be absent in the midluteal phase. No relation was found between the expression of cell adhesion molecules and the expression of ER and PR. Because the cadherins and beta 1 integrins could be detected in late luteal phase endometrium, these cell adhesion molecules could be involved in the attachment of endometrial fragments to the peritoneal lining as a result of retrograde menstruation. The potential function in the pathogenesis of endometriosis remains to be elucidated.
检测月经周期各阶段子宫内膜活检组织中钙黏蛋白和整合素的表达。细胞黏附分子可能参与月经期间子宫内膜的脱落以及子宫内膜异位症患者脱落的子宫内膜组织附着于腹膜。
对新鲜冷冻切片进行免疫组织化学研究。
三级医疗大学医学中心。
16例因生育力低下检查而接受月经周期监测的患者。所有患者月经周期规律且有排卵。
在月经周期明确的阶段获取子宫内膜样本。同时，采集血样检测雌二醇（E2）和孕酮（P）。
细胞黏附分子（包括E-钙黏蛋白和P-钙黏蛋白以及整合素α2β1、α3β1、α4β1、α5β1和α6β1）的表达，以及雌激素受体（ER）和孕激素受体（PR）的表达。
所有子宫内膜样本均检测到E-钙黏蛋白和P-钙黏蛋白的表达。整合素α3β1、α4β1、α5β1和α6β1在月经周期各阶段的样本中均有检测到，而整合素α2β1在黄体中期样本中未检测到。卵泡早期血清E2水平为24.7 pg/mL（范围：10.9至35.4 pg/mL），排卵前期为190.7 pg/mL（范围：152.5至256.1 pg/mL）（换算系数至国际单位制，3.671）。黄体中期血清P为13.7 ng/mL（范围：10.3至16.7 ng/mL），月经前期为6.4 ng/mL（范围：1.2至13.7 ng/mL）（换算系数至国际单位制，3.180）。上皮细胞和基质细胞中ER和PR染色阳性细胞比例在排卵前期最高。
所有样本均检测到E-钙黏蛋白和P-钙黏蛋白的表达，且在整个月经周期中无变化。如果它们的表达在周期性月经脱落中起功能作用，那么表达缺失仅限于短时间。在β1整合素中，只有α2β1的表达在月经周期中受到调节，且在黄体中期未检测到。未发现细胞黏附分子表达与ER和PR表达之间存在关联。由于在黄体晚期子宫内膜中可检测到钙黏蛋白和β1整合素，这些细胞黏附分子可能因逆行月经而参与子宫内膜碎片附着于腹膜。其在子宫内膜异位症发病机制中的潜在作用仍有待阐明。
