Pascale Lemoine

STUDY QUESTION: Does the endometrial functionalis have the potential to undergo self-renewal after menstruation and how is this process controlled by ovarian steroids? SUMMARY ANSWER: Endometrial xenografts subjected to withdrawal of estra…

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are key enzymes involved in extracellular matrix remodelling. In the human endometrium, the expression and activity of several MMPs are maximal during the menstrual phase. Moreover, MMPs are thought to be in…

Menstrual endometrial breakdown induced by estradiol and progesterone withdrawal is regularly attributed to vasospasm of spiral arteries causing ischemia and hypoxia. We investigated whether hypoxia actually occurred in an in vivo model of …

Coupling of focal degradation and renewal of the functional layer of menstrual endometrium is a key event of the female reproductive biology. The precise mechanisms by which the various endometrial cell populations control extracellular mat…

BACKGROUND: Menstruation is associated with a striking increase in matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activity. However, it is still unknown whether the level of MMP activity correlates with the amount of menstrual bleeding. METHODS: We used hi…

Recent studies strongly suggest that matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) play a key role in the initiation of menstrual bleeding in the human endometrium upon the fall of ovarian steroid serum concentrations by inducing the degradation of the …

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the regulation of perimenstrual MMP-1 expression in human endometrium. DESIGN: In vitro study utilizing epithelial-stromal co-cultures. SETTING: Cell Biology Unit, International Institute of Cellular and Molecular …

The endometrium is the only human tissue to undergo cyclic breakdown and regeneration. This physiological alternation renders it an advantageous system for studying tissue remodelling. Our previous observations indicate that menstrual endom…