Aberrant levels of Wnt/beta-catenin pathway components in a rat model of endometriosis

作者：de Mattos Romulo Medina; Pereira Paula Rodrigues; de Oliveira Barros Eliane Gouvea; da Silva Julianna Henriques; Palmero Celia Yelimar; da Costa Nathalia Meireles; Ribeiro Pinto Luis Felipe; Pereira Gimba Etel Rodrigues; Hecht Fabio; Ferreira Luciana Bueno; Machado Daniel Escorsim; de Oliveira Felipe Leite; Nasciutti Luiz Eurico^*

来源：Histology and Histopathology, 2016, 31(8): 933-942.

DOI：10.14670/HH-11-730

• Endometriosis
• Wnt pathway
• beta-catenin
• Galectin-3
• Rat models

Endometriosis is a benign gynecological disease affecting approximately 10-15% of women of reproductive age and 25-50% of all infertile women. It is characterized by the presence of glands and/ or endometrial stroma outside the uterine cavity. Angiogenesis is a crucial process for the development and maintenance of endometriotic lesions. The Wnt/beta-catenin pathway is a major promoter of angiogenesis in both physiological and pathological conditions. In the present study, we evaluated the expression of molecules related to the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway in a rat model of peritoneal endometriosis. mRNA analyses showed significantly increased expression of Wnt4 and Wnt7b and decreased expression of Gsk3beta and E-cadherin in endometriotic lesions. However, there were no differences in beta-catenin and Fzd2 mRNA expression. In addition, we observed a significant increase of nuclear beta-catenin in endometriotic lesions, a hallmark of Wnt/beta-catenin pathway activation. Stromal beta-catenin staining was found in 45.4% of endometrial tissues and 77.8% of endometriotic lesions. beta-catenin nuclear localization was found in 18.2% of the endometrial tissues and 33.3% of endometriotic lesions. Finally, the expression of galectin-3, a regulator of this pathway, was increased in endometriosis. In summary, this pattern of Wnt/beta-catenin components expression suggests an increased activity of this pathway in endometriosis.

• 出版日期2016-8