Human prolyl hydroxylase expression in uterine leiomyoma during the menstrual cycle.

BACKGROUND: To investigate the role of prolyl hydroxylase (PH), a key enzyme of collagen synthesis, in human uterine leiomyoma, PH expression was determined in the normal uterine myometrium and the leiomyoma tissues during the menstrual cycle. METHODS: The tissues were obtained from 40 regularly cycling women (aged 29 to 53 yr) who were undergoing abdominal hysterectomy for symptomatic uterine leiomyoma. Immunohistochemistry for human PH with specific monoclonal antibody was used for analysis. RESULTS: Immunohistochemical staining for PH revealed intense staining of leiomyoma cells in the uterine leiomyoma throughout the menstrual cycle, as compared with the adjacent normal myometrium. In the secretory phase, weak or no immunostaining for PH was detected in the normal myometrial tissues. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that increased expression of PH might play an role in the physiology of uterine leiomyoma during the menstrual cycle.

Increased type I and V collagen expression in uterine leiomyomas during the menstrual cycle.

Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis showed that the ratios of type I and type V collagen expression were significantly increased in the leiomyoma tissues at the protein level, as compared with those in the normal myometrium tissues through the menstrual cycle. These results suggest that increased expression of type I and type V collagen might play a role in the pathogenesis of uterine leiomyoma.

Prolyl hydroxylase in human corpora lutea during menstrual cycle and early pregnancy.

Immunohistochemical staining for human prolyl hydroxylase revealed intense staining of the human corpora lutea (CL) parencyma during early pregnancy compared with those in the menstrual cycle. These results suggest that human prolyl hydroxylase might play an important role in determining the physiology and structure of the CL during the menstrual cycle and early pregnancy.

Decreased type III collagen expression in human uterine cervix of prolapse uteri.

The precise mechanism of prolapse uteri is not fully understood. There is evidence to suggest that abnormalities of collagen, the main component of extracellular matrix, or its repair mechanism, may predispose women to prolapse. To investigate the characteristic structure of human uterine cervix of patients with prolapse uteri, various types of collagen expression in the uterine cervix tissues of the prolapse uteri were compared to those of normal uterine cervix. After informed consent, 36 specimens of uterine cervical tissues were obtained at the time of surgery from 16 postmenopausal women with prolapse uteri (stage III-IV by the Pelvic Organ Prolapse Quantification examination) and 20 postmenopausal women without prolapse uteri (control group). Collagens were extracted from the uterine cervix tissues by salt precipitation methods. The relative levels of various collagens were evaluated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The uterine cervix was longer in the patients with prolapse uteri than those of postmenopausal controls without prolapse uteri. The ratios of type III to type I collagen in the uterine cervical tissues were significantly decreased in the prolapse uteri, as compared to those of the postmenopausal uterine cervix without prolapse. These results suggest that decreased type III collagen expression may play an important role in determing the physiology and structure of the uterine cervix tissues of prolapse uteri.

Immunohistochemical analysis of collagen expression in uterine leiomyomata during the menstrual cycle.

To investigate the possible involvement of collagen in the characteristic features of human leiomyoma, type I, III and IV collagen expression was determined at the protein level in normal myometrium and leiomyoma tissues throughout the menstrual cycle. The tissues were obtained from 40 pre-menopausal women (29-53 years of age) at various stages of the menstrual cycle who were undergoing abdominal hysterectomy for symptomatic uterine leiomyoma. Immunohistochemical staining was performed with specific monoclonal antibodies against type I, III and IV collagen in the leiomyoma and the myometrial tissues. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that type I collagen expression was increased in the leiomyoma tissues at the protein level as compared to that in the normal myometrium tissues throughout the menstrual cycle. These results suggest that increased expression of type I collagen plays a key role in the pathogenesis of uterine leiomyoma.

Increased type III and V collagen expression in human corpora lutea in early pregnancy.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the possible involvement of collagen in the characteristic structure and function of human corpora lutea (CL), type V collagen expression was determined in the CL tissues during the menstrual cycle and early pregnancy. DESIGN: In vitro experiment. SETTING: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama, Japan. PATIENT(S): Regulatory cycling women and pregnant women with ovarian tumor and ectopic pregnancy who underwent adnexectomy. INTERVENTION(S): Composition of the various types of collagen in human CL was analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Expression of type V collagen. RESULT(S): The ratios of type III to type I collagen and the ratios of type V to type I collagen in the CL tissues were significantly increased in early pregnancy compared with those in the menstrual cycle. CONCLUSION(S): These results suggest that alterations in composition of collagen might play an important role in determining the physiology and structure of the CL during the menstrual cycle and early pregnancy.

Immunohistochemical analysis of collagen expression in human corpora lutea during the menstrual cycle and early pregnancy.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the characteristic structure and function of human corpora lutea (CL), various types of collagen expression were determined in the CL tissues during the menstrual cycle and early pregnancy. DESIGN: In vitro experiment. SETTING: Department of obstetrics and gynecology at a medical university. PATIENT(S): Regulatory cycling women and pregnant women with ovarian tumor and ectopic pregnancy who underwent adnexectomy. INTERVENTION(S): Immunohistochemistry for human type I, III, and IV collagen with specific monoclonal antibodies was used for analysis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Expression of type I, III, and IV collagen. RESULT(S): Immunohistochemical staining for type I and III collagen revealed intense staining of the CL stroma during early pregnancy, as compared with those in the menstrual cycle. Moreover, pericellular intense immunostaining for type IV collagen was observed around the luteal cells, especially luteal granulosa cells, of early pregnancy. CONCLUSION(S): These results suggest that alterations in distribution of collagen might play an important role in determining the physiology and structure of the CL during the menstrual cycle and early pregnancy.

Decreased type I collagen expression in human uterine cervix during pregnancy.

To provide some insight into the mechanism of cervical ripening, the expression of type I collagen was investigated in human uterine cervical tissues obtained from the first (n = 4) and third (n = 3) trimesters of normal pregnancy. Indirect immunofluorescent staining was performed for type I collagen, and Northern blot analysis was done to assess expression of mRNA for the alpha1(I) chain. Collagens were also extracted from the human cervical tissues in the first and third trimesters of pregnancy. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed loose distribution of type I collagen in the uterine cervix of the first trimester compared with the third trimester of pregnancy. The relative levels of various collagens were evaluated by SDS-PAGE. The ratios of the intensity of the band of alpha1(I) to that of total collagen alpha1 chain in cervical tissues of the third trimester were significantly lower than those in cervical tissues of the first trimester of pregnancy (P < 0.05). In contrast, the ratios of the intensity of the band of alpha1(III) to that of total collagen alpha1 chain in cervical tissues of the third trimester were significantly higher than those in cervical tissues of the first trimester of pregnancy (P < 0.05). Northern blot analysis revealed that the cervical expression of mRNA for the alpha1(I) chain was significantly reduced in the third trimester compared with the first trimester of pregnancy (P < 0.01). These results suggest that type I collagen might play an important role in the maintenance of pregnancy and that decreased expression of this collagen could be associated with the process of uterine cervical ripening.