Abstract
BackgroundThe precise etiology of endometriosis is not fully understood; the involvement of stem cells theory is a new hypothesis. Related studies mainly focus on stemness-related genes, and pluripotency markers may play a role in the etiology of endometriosis. We aimed to analyze the transcription pluripotency factors sex-determining region Y-box 2 (SOX2), Nanog homeobox (NANOG), and octamer-binding protein 4 (OCT4) in the endometrium of reproductive-age women with and without ovarian endometriosis.MethodsWe recruited 26 women with laparoscopy-diagnosed ovarian endometriosis (endometriosis group) and 16 disease-free women (control group) to the study. Endometrial and endometriotic samples were collected. SOX2, NANOG, and OCT4 expression were analyzed with quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, western blotting, and immunohistochemistry.ResultsCompared to the control group, SOX2 mRNA and protein expression was significantly higher in the eutopic endometrium of participants in the endometriosis group. In the endometriosis group, SOX2 and NANOG mRNA and protein expression were significantly increased in ectopic endometrium compared with eutopic endometrium; there was a trend towards lower OCT4 mRNA expression and higher OCT4 protein expression in ectopic endometrium.ConclusionsThe transcription pluripotency factors SOX2 and NANOG were overexpression in ovarian endometriosis, their role in pathogenesis of endometriosis should be further studied.
Highlights
The precise etiology of endometriosis is not fully understood; the involvement of stem cells theory is a new hypothesis
sex-determining region Y-box 2 (SOX2), Nanog homeobox (NANOG), and octamer-binding protein 4 (OCT4) mRNA expression SOX2 mRNA expression in the eutopic endometrium of ovarian endometriosis were significantly higher than that in normal endometrium (P = 0.02); expression of NANOG and OCT4 mRNA in eutopic endometrium increased but no statistically significant when compared with normal controls
Expression and location of SOX2, NANOG, and OCT4 protein Compared to normal endometrium, SOX2 protein expression in the eutopic and ectopic endometrium of ovarian endometriosis was significantly increased (P = 0.04; P = 0.009, respectively); NANOG protein expression in ectopic endometrium was statistically significantly different (P = 0.04); OCT4 protein expression in eutopic and ectopic endometrium tended to be higher (P > 0.05)
Summary
The precise etiology of endometriosis is not fully understood; the involvement of stem cells theory is a new hypothesis. Related studies mainly focus on stemness-related genes, and pluripotency markers may play a role in the etiology of endometriosis. Aberrant SOX2, NANOG, and OCT4 expression has been demonstrated in endometriotic tissues, and OCT4 promoted endometrial cell migration activity [7,8,9]. These markers are not identified exclusively in women with ovarian endometriosis. We aimed to examine and compare SOX2, NANOG, and OCT4 expression in endometrial or endometriotic tissues from women with and without ovarian endometriosis
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