Hum. Reprod. Advance Access originally published online on July 15, 2005
Human Reproduction 2005 20(11):3039-3046; doi:10.1093/humrep/dei183
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Endometrial expression of immunomodulatory cytokines and their regulators during early pregnancy in bonnet monkeys (Macaca radiata)
1 Primate Biology Department, 2 Experimental Animal Facility, 3 Infertility Clinic, National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health, Indian Council of Medical Research, Jehangir Merwanji Street, Parel, Mumbai-400012, Maharashtra, India
4 To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: ritugeet{at}vsnl.net
BACKGROUND: It is well established that endometrium undergoes extensive histological changes during implantation and subsequent stages of pregnancy in rodents as well as primates. Our previous investigation using a non-human primate model has demonstrated that morphological alterations are initiated even before the embryo invades the endometrium. The present study was undertaken to determine whether the embryo-induced morphological changes are accompanied by any alteration in the protein levels of the immunomodulatory cytokines and their regulators in the preimplantation stage endometrium. METHODS: The endometrial expression of immunosuppressive factors such as transforming growth factor
2 (TGF
2), glycodelin (PP14), leukaemia inhibitory factor (LIF) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were analysed on day 6 post-ovulation in pregnant and non-pregnant bonnet monkeys (Macaca radiata) using immunohistochemical methods. RESULTS: The endometrial expression of TGF
2, TGF
2 receptor, PP14 and IL-6 were significantly up-regulated (p < 0.05) in pregnant animals as compared to non-pregnant animals, whereas the expression of LIF and its receptor remained unaltered in pregnant animals. CONCLUSIONS: Expression levels of some immunomodulatory cytokines in endometrium are significantly increased even before the embryo invades the endometrium. The altered cytokine expression profile in endometrium probably contributes towards generating a conducive environment for the embryo survival, growth and development in the uterus.
Key words: bonnet monkeys/early pregnancy/endometrium/glycodelin/immunomodulation
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