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Molecular Aspects of Endometriosis

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A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Pathology, Diagnostics, and Therapeutics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2024) | Viewed by 5309

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Dr. Roberta Fusco

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Department of Chemical, Biological, Pharmaceutical and Environmental Science, University of Messina, 98122 Messina, Italy
Interests: biochemistry; molecular mechanism; oxidative stress; endometriosis
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Dear Colleagues,

Endometriosis is a chronic condition in which the endometrium, which usually provides the inner facing of the uterus, sprouts in other areas, normally on the bowel, ovaries, bladder, rectum, and pelvic lining. Depending on the stage of the disease, it could lead to dysmenorrhea, infertility, and chronic recurring pelvic pain in billions of women of reproductive age. While the mechanisms underlying this process remain unclear, it is considered that immune dysfunction and the subsequent inability to effectively clear these fragments enables endometrial lesions to form in the peritoneal cavity. From a histological point of view, epithelial cells and stroma are capsuled in surrounding tissue and show extensive fibrosis and smooth muscle metaplasia. Lesions are characterized by invasiveness and mobility, fibroblast–myofibroblast differentiation, and epithelial–mesenchymal transition. Recent findings underline the importance of oxidative imbalance and inflammatory responses both at the lesion site and in the peritoneum and the related chronic pain state. These proinflammatory microenvironments include inflammatory cytokines/chemokines, prostaglandins, growth factors (GR), and reactive oxygen species (ROS). These mediators produce activation of sensory nerve and nociceptive pathways, and proposing inflammatory mechanisms may thus be critical in endometriosis-associated pain. This Special Issue will focus on the molecular mechanisms associated with endometriosis and on the substances that would be useful in the management of the disease.

Dr. Roberta Fusco
Guest Editor

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Keywords

endometriosis
molecular mechanisms
therapeutic substances
inflammatory
pathology

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 558 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Homozygous C677T Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (MTHFR) Polymorphism as a Risk Factor for Endometriosis: A Retrospective Case–Control Study

by Giovanni Delli Carpini, Luca Giannella, Jacopo Di Giuseppe, Nina Montik, Michele Montanari, Mariasole Fichera, Daniele Crescenzi, Carolina Marzocchini, Maria Liberata Meccariello, Donato Di Biase, Arianna Vignini and Andrea Ciavattini

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(20), 15404; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms242015404 - 20 Oct 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1695

Abstract

This study was conducted to evaluate the role of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T homozygous polymorphism as a risk factor for endometriosis. A retrospective case–control study was conducted from January 2020 to December 2022 on all patients attending the gynecological outpatient clinic of our institution who had performed an MTHFR polymorphisms test. Patients with endometriosis were considered cases, while those without endometriosis were considered controls. The presence of an MTHFR C677T homozygous polymorphism was defined as exposure. Risk factors for endometriosis were considered confounders in a binomial logistic regression, with endometriosis diagnosis as the dependent variable. Among the 409 included patients, 106 (25.9%) cases and 303 (74.1%) controls were identified. A higher rate of MTHFR C677T homozygous polymorphism was found in patients with endometriosis (24.5% vs. 15.8%, p = 0.0453), with an adOR of 1.889 (95% CI 1.076–3.318, p = 0.0269) at the binomial logistic regression. A history of no previous pregnancy was associated with an endometriosis diagnosis (adOR 2.191, 95% CI 1.295–3.708, p = 0.0035). An MTHFR C677T homozygous polymorphism could be considered a risk factor for endometriosis. Epigenetic modifications may be the most important mechanism explaining the observed association through the processes of altered DNA methylation and reduced activity of antioxidant systems. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Aspects of Endometriosis)

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18 pages, 4117 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of Proteasome and Immunoproteasome Levels in Plasma and Peritoneal Fluid in Patients with Endometriosis

by Monika Wróbel, Zielińska Zuzanna, Łukasz Ołdak, Aleksandra Kalicka, Grzegorz Mańka, Mariusz Kiecka, Robert Z. Spaczyński, Piotr Piekarski, Beata Banaszewska, Artur Jakimiuk, Tadeusz Issat, Wojciech Rokita, Jakub Młodawski, Maria Szubert, Piotr Sieroszewski, Grzegorz Raba, Kamil Szczupak, Tomasz Kluz, Marek Kluza, Piotr Pierzyński, Cezary Wojtyła, Michał Lipa, Damian Warzecha, Mirosław Wielgoś, Włodzimierz Sawicki, Ewa Gorodkiewicz and Piotr Laudański Show full author list Hide full author list

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(18), 14363; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241814363 - 21 Sep 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1368

Abstract

Endometriosis is a chronic disease in which the endometrium cells are located outside the uterine cavity. The aim of this study was to evaluate circulating 20S proteasome and 20S immunoproteasome levels in plasma and peritoneal fluid in women with and without endometriosis in order to assess their usefulness as biomarkers of disease. Concentrations were measured using surface plasmon resonance imaging biosensors. Patients with suspected endometriosis were included in the study—plasma was collected in 112 cases and peritoneal fluid in 75. Based on the presence of endometriosis lesions detected during laparoscopy, patients were divided into a study group (confirmed endometriosis) and a control group (patients without endometriosis). Proteasome and immunoproteasome levels in both the plasma (p = 0.174; p = 0.696, respectively) and the peritoneal fluid (p = 0.909; p = 0.284, respectively) did not differ between those groups. There was a statistically significant difference in the plasma proteasome levels between patients in the control group and those with mild (Stage I and II) endometriosis (p = 0.047) and in the plasma immunoproteasome levels in patients with ovarian cysts compared to those without (p = 0.017). The results of our study do not support the relevance of proteasome and immunoproteasome determination as biomarkers of the disease but suggest a potentially active role in the pathogenesis of endometriosis. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Aspects of Endometriosis)

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18 pages, 4206 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Modulation of the Proliferative Pathway, Neuroinflammation and Pain in Endometriosis

by Livia Interdonato, Ylenia Marino, Ramona D’Amico, Marika Cordaro, Rosalba Siracusa, Daniela Impellizzeri, Francesco Macrì, Roberta Fusco, Salvatore Cuzzocrea and Rosanna Di Paola

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(14), 11741; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241411741 - 21 Jul 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1698

Abstract

Endometriosis is a chronic disease characterized by pelvic inflammation. This study aimed at investigating the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathology and how they can be modulated by the administration of a natural compound, Actaea racemosa (AR). We employed an in vivo model of endometriosis in which rats were intraperitoneally injected with uterine fragments from donor animals. During the experiment, rats were monitored by abdominal high-frequency ultrasound analysis. AR was able to reduce the lesion’s size and histological morphology. From a molecular point of view, AR reduced hyperproliferation, as shown by Ki-67 and PCNA expression and MAPK phosphorylation. The impaired apoptosis pathway was also restored, as shown by the TUNEL assay and RT-PCR for Bax, Bcl-2, and Caspase levels. AR also has important antioxidant (reduced Nox expression, restored SOD activity and GSH levels, and reduced MPO activity and MDA levels) and anti-inflammatory (reduced cytokine levels) properties. Moreover, AR demonstrated its ability to reduce the pain-like behaviors associated with the pathology, the neuro-sensitizing mediators (c-FOS and NGF) expression, and the related central astrogliosis (GFAP expression in the spinal cord, brain cortex, and hippocampus). Overall, our data showed that AR was able to manage several pathways involved in endometriosis suppression. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Aspects of Endometriosis)

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