A High-Throughput Assay for the Detection of α-Dystroglycan N-Terminus in Human Uterine Fluid to Determine Uterine Receptivity

Abstract

Embryo implantation requires a healthy embryo and a receptive uterus. In women, the uterus remains a hostile environment and must undergo functional changes to convert to a receptive state for embryo implantation. Determining uterine receptivity is vital in IVF treatment, as the timing of embryo transfer needs to be synchronized with uterine receptivity. However, to date, no reliable biochemical tests are available to determine uterine receptivity. We recently established that removal of α-dystroglycan N-terminus (α-DG-N) from the uterine surface plays an important role in the establishment of uterine receptivity. Importantly, the α-DG-N removed from the uterine tissue enters into the uterine fluid, and the levels correlate with the tissue status of receptivity. Detection of α-DG-N in uterine fluid may therefore provide a nonsurgical approach to assess uterine receptivity. In this study, we first validated three monoclonal antibodies raised against α-DG-N in our system, and then established a sandwich ELISA suitable for the detection of α-DG-N in human uterine fluid. This ELISA detected significantly higher concentrations of α-DG-N in uterine fluid of women in the receptive phase. We believe this newly established α-DG-N ELISA may provide an important tool in the development of noninvasive strategies to detect uterine receptivity in women.