Paired-box gene 2 is down-regulated in endometriosis and correlates with low epidermal growth factor receptor expression

A A de Graaff, B Delvoux, Bert Delvoux, Koen Van de Vijver, K K Van de Vijver, C M Kyama, Cleophas Kyama, Thomas D’Hooghe, T M D'Hooghe, G A J Dunselman, A Romano, Andrea Romano
Human Reproduction · 2012 · vol. 27(6) , pp. 1676–1684 · doi:10.1093/humrep/des124 · PMID:22473392 · W2120457172
article OA: bronze CC0 ⤵ 6 in-corpus citations
📄 Open PDF View on OpenAlex View on PubMed View at publisher
⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-09 ⓘ

Paired-box 2 (Pax2) expression is significantly reduced in endometriosis lesions compared to eutopic endometrium, correlating with lower epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) levels.

One-sentence paraphrase of the abstract; not a substitute for reading it. No clinical advice. How this works

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Paired-box 2 (Pax2) is involved in the development of the female genital tract and has been associated with endometrial pathologies. The expression of Pax2 is induced by epidermal growth factor (EGF) and estrogens. In the present study, Pax2 expression and regulation were investigated in endometriosis. METHODS AND RESULTS: Pax2 protein expression was assessed by immunohistochemistry in the eutopic (i.e. inside the uterus) and ectopic tissue (endometriosis) from 11 patients. Immunoreactivity was high in the endometrium, with strong epithelial and weaker stromal staining. Similar expression patterns of Pax2 were observed in the endometrium of women without endometriosis (n = 12). The mRNA level of Pax2 was assessed by real-time PCR in the eutopic and ectopic endometria of 14 patients and in the endometrium from women without endometriosis (n = 20). Pax2 expression was lower in endometriotic lesions than that in the eutopic endometrium of patients (P< 0.001) and controls (P= 0.007). Three possible mechanisms determining low Pax2 expression were investigated: EGF signalling, CpG DNA methylation of the Pax2 promoter and steroid response. The mRNA level of the EGF receptor (EGFR1) was assessed in the samples used for Pax2 mRNA assessment. A significant correlation between EGFR1 and Pax2 in both eutopic and ectopic tissues was observed (R = 0.58; slope regression line, 0.81; 95% CI: 0.09-1.52 and R = 0.54; slope regression line, 2.51; 95% CI: 0.02-4.99, respectively). CpG DNA methylation was analyzed by methyl-specific PCR in two regions of the Pax2 promoter but they were unmethylated in all samples. Steroid responsiveness was assessed using endometrial explant cultures and Pax2 was not regulated by either 17β-estradiol or progesterone. CONCLUSIONS: In endometriosis patients, Pax2 is down-regulated in the lesions compared with the eutopic tissue, possibly due to low EGF signalling.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Condition tags

mesh:D004715endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Down-Regulation Endometriosis ErbB Receptors PAX2 Transcription Factor Adult DNA Methylation DNA Methylation Down-Regulation Endometriosis Endometrium Endometrium Epidermal Growth Factor Epidermal Growth Factor ErbB Receptors ErbB Receptors Female Humans Immunohistochemistry PAX2 Transcription Factor PAX2 Transcription Factor

Citation neighborhood

Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. [ expand to 2 hops ] — adds papers reached through this work's immediate citers/citees. Heavier; up to 60 extra dots.

References (32)

Cited by (6)

Source provenance

europepmc
last seen: 2026-06-04T01:30:01.192114+00:00
openalex
last seen: 2026-06-04T00:00:01.174412+00:00
pubmed
last seen: 2026-05-13T22:16:17.081435+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK