BACKGROUND: It has been hypothesized that the origin of early-onset endometriosis could be from endometrial mesenchymal stem cells (eMSCs) in neonatal uterine blood (NUB). There is no information on the possible mechanistic basis linking an association between NUB/neonatal endometrium and development of early-onset endometriosis. In this study we performed a series of experiments to clarify the mechanistic link between NUB and/or neonatal endometrium and development of early-onset endometriosis.
METHODS: We retrospectively collected postmortem neonatal endometria (n = 15) and prospectively collected NUB (n = 18) of female babies for the analysis of different biological markers including eMSCs. Immunohistochemical analysis of neonatal endometria was performed to examine the expression patterns of ovarian steroid receptors (ER/PGR), decidualization (prolactin, IGFBP1), pre-decidualization (Glycodelin A, α-SMA), proliferation (Ki-67 index), vascularity (CD31 + cells), immunocompetent CD68+, CD45+, CD56 + cells and some putative markers of eMSCs. Cell transfer method and immunocytochemistry were used to investigate the eMSCs and/or endometrial cells in NUB.
RESULTS: Immunohistochemical analysis of postmortem neonatal endometria revealed variable staining response to ER/PGR, decidual markers, and substantial proliferative and angiogenic activity. A moderate to strong immunoexpression of Glycodelin-A was found in both neonatal and adult endometria. The tissue infiltration of CD56+, CD45 + and CD68 + immunocompetent cells was significantly low in neonatal endometria than that in adult endometria (p = 0.0003, p < 0.0001, p = 0.034, respectively). No eMSCs or even endometrial cells were detected in NUB. However, a variable expression of some phenotypes of eMSCs (CD90/CD105) was found in neonatal endometria.
CONCLUSIONS: Based on our serial experiments we did not find any supporting evidence for the role of NUB in early-onset endometriosis. Neonatal endometria showed variable expression of ovarian steroid receptors, decidualization, and a substantial amount of proliferative and angiogenic activity. As an alternative mechanism, a significantly less tissue accumulation of immunocompetent cells in neonatal endometria may explain the survival of ER + and PGR + cells should they make entry into the pelvis and consequent development of early endometriosis with the onset of ovarian function. Future study with large sample size and application of modified technological tools is warranted to test the NUB hypothesis and to clarify their biological or clinical significance.
BACKGROUND: not applicable.

UNASSIGNED: This study aimed to investigate the inflammatory-immune cells in the peripheral blood of women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and assessed the potential correlation between inflammatory-immune cells and infertility in PCOS women.
UNASSIGNED: In this case-control study, the profiles of lymphocyte subsets were analyzed by flow cytometry. White blood cells (WBC), neutrophils (Neu), lymphocytes, Ferriman-Gallwey (F-G) score, testosterone, prolactin, follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, fasting blood glucose, and fasting plasma insulin were measured, together with body mass index. Association between inflammatory-immune cells and PCOS was evaluated. Moreover, inflammatory-immune cells of the PCOS women with infertility were evaluated, and the relative operating characteristic (ROC) curve and cutoff values were calculated.
UNASSIGNED: The number of WBC, Neu, and lymphocytes was higher in PCOS women than controls (P<0.05). The percentages of total T lymphocytes, CD4+T, and NK were significantly increased in the PCOS group (P<0.001). The CD4/CD8 ratio was obviously elevated for increasing CD4+T (P<0.05). Consequently, T%, CD4+T%, and NK% were found to be the independent risk factors of PCOS by ROC curve and multivariate logistic regression analysis. Furthermore, only NK% was significantly higher in PCOS women with infertility than those who had PCOS without infertility (P<0.001). To diagnose infertility in PCOS, the cutoff value of NK% was calculated as 16.43%.
UNASSIGNED: These findings suggest that the pathogenesis of PCOS is related to immune cells including T, CD4+T, and NK cells. NK cells are likely to be a potential predictive factor for PCOS women with infertility.