Marbaix E, Kokorine I, Moulin P, Donnez J, Eeckhout Y, Courtoy P J
Cell Biology Unit, University of Louvain Medical School, Brussels, Belgium.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1996 Aug 20;93(17):9120-5. doi: 10.1073/pnas.93.17.9120.
The mechanisms underlying the menstrual lysis leading to shedding of the human endometrium and its accompanying bleeding are still largely unknown. In particular, whether breakdown of the endometrial fibrillar extra-cellular matrix that precedes bleeding depends on aspartic-, cysteine-, serine-, or metalloproteinases remains unclear. In the present study, menstrual regression of the human endometrium was mimicked in organ culture. Whereas sex steroids could preserve tissue integrity only in nonperimenstrual explants, matrix breakdown upon sex steroid deprivation was completely and reversibly inhibited at all stages of the menstrual cycle by specific inhibitors of matrix metalloproteinases, but not by inhibitors of the other classes of proteinases. Matrix metalloproteinases are thus identified as the key class of proteinases involved in the initiation of menstruation.
导致人类子宫内膜脱落及其伴随出血的月经溶解机制在很大程度上仍不为人知。尤其是，出血前子宫内膜纤维状细胞外基质的分解是否依赖于天冬氨酸蛋白酶、半胱氨酸蛋白酶、丝氨酸蛋白酶或金属蛋白酶仍不清楚。在本研究中，在器官培养中模拟了人类子宫内膜的月经消退。虽然性类固醇仅能在非月经前期外植体中维持组织完整性，但在月经周期的所有阶段，基质金属蛋白酶的特异性抑制剂可完全且可逆地抑制性类固醇剥夺后的基质分解，而其他类别的蛋白酶抑制剂则无此作用。因此，基质金属蛋白酶被确定为参与月经起始的关键蛋白酶类别。
