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Endocrine-Immune Interactions in Human Endometrium
aDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USA bDepartment of Histology and Embryology, Akdeniz University School of Medicine, Antalya, Turkey, 07070 cDepartment of Medical Biology and Genetics, Akdeniz University School of Medicine, Antalya, Turkey, 07070
Address for correspondence: Aydin Arici, M.D., Yale University School of Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology, 333 Cedar Street, New Haven, CT 06520-8063. Fax: 203-785-7134. aydin.arici{at}yale.edu
The immune system is a complex entity designed to eliminate foreign intruding antigens and is influenced by and, in turn, influences the function of the reproductive system. Despite the widespread associations between immunology and reproductive medicine, the study of system interactions remains in its infancy. Many diverse facts are accumulating, and pieces of the puzzle are becoming available to provide a clearer picture. In this review article, we focus on the interactions between endocrine and immune systems in the human endometrium. Understanding the molecular pathways in endocrine-immune interactions in the human endometrium is crucial to understand events such as menstrual bleeding, tissue repair and regeneration, inflammation, angiogenesis, blastocyst implantation, and progression of pregnancy. These events require a balanced regulation of endometrial differentiation, proliferation, cell survival, leukocyte recruitment, apoptosis, and angiogenesis by sex steroids. In this review, we first outline the role of survival factors such as phosphoinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B, PTEN, NF
 B, and apoptotic molecules (Fas-FasL, Bcl-2). We then discuss their regulation by estrogen and progesterone in the endometrium. We present evidence for direct and/or indirect roles of steroid hormones on the expression of chemotactic cytokines (interleukin-8 and monocyte chemotactic protein-1) and on the survival versus apoptosis of resident endometrial cells (stromal, epithelial, and endothelial cells) and nonresident cells (leukocytes).
Key Words: endocrine-immune interactions • human endometrium • survival factors • cytokines • reproductive hormones This article has been cited by other articles:
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