Abstract
The uterus plays an important and unique role during pregnancy and is a dynamic organ subjected to mechanical stimuli. It has been reported that infertility occurs when the peristalsis is prevented, although its mechanisms remain unknown. In this study, we found that mechanical strain mimicking the peristaltic motion of the uterine smooth muscle layer enabled the endometrial stromal cells to acquire contractility. In order to mimic the peristalsis induced by uterine smooth muscle cells, cyclic tensile stretch was applied to human endometrial stromal cells. The results showed that the strained cells exerted greater contractility in three-dimensional collagen gels in the presence of oxytocin, due to up-regulated alpha-smooth muscle actin expression via the cAMP signaling pathway. These in vitro findings underscore the plasticity of the endometrial stromal cell phenotype and suggest the possibility of acquired contractility by these cells in vivo and its potential contribution to uterine contractile activity. This phenomenon may be a typical example of how a tissue passively acquires new contractile functions under mechanical stimulation from a neighboring tissue, enabling it to support the adjacent tissue’s functions.
Highlights
The uterus plays an important and unique role during pregnancy and is a dynamic organ subjected to mechanical stimuli
While the inner layer of the endometrium is composed of epithelial cells and stromal cells, the thickest middle myometrial layer mainly consists of smooth muscle cells
We hypothesized that the uterine peristalsis induced by uterine smooth muscle cells might affect the contractile ability of endometrial stromal cells, an important function of the uterus for pregnancy
Summary
The uterus plays an important and unique role during pregnancy and is a dynamic organ subjected to mechanical stimuli. We found that mechanical strain mimicking the peristaltic motion of the uterine smooth muscle layer enabled the endometrial stromal cells to acquire contractility. The results showed that the strained cells exerted greater contractility in three-dimensional collagen gels in the presence of oxytocin, due to up-regulated alpha-smooth muscle actin expression via the cAMP signaling pathway These in vitro findings underscore the plasticity of the endometrial stromal cell phenotype and suggest the possibility of acquired contractility by these cells in vivo and its potential contribution to uterine contractile activity. The uterus allows implantation of the embryo and regulates its growth by supplying nutrients from the mother’s body[6] It is known as a dynamic organ that is modulated by menstrual hormone changes during the menstrual cycle and pregnancy. It is possible that the existence of these mechanisms helps to make the uterine peristaltic movement, which plays an important role for implantation of fertilized eggs and pregnancy, more steady and reliable
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