Endometrial whole metabolome profile at the receptive phase: influence of Mediterranean Diet and infertility

Nerea M Molina, Lucas Jurado‐Fasoli, Lucas Jurado-Fasoli, Alberto Sola-Leyva, Alberto Sola‐Leyva, Raquel Sevilla-Lorente, Analuce Canha-Gouveia, Susana Ruiz-Durán, Juan Torres Fontes, Juan Fontes, Concepción M Aguilera, Signe Altmäe
Frontiers in endocrinology · 2023 · vol. 14 , pp. 1120988 · doi:10.3389/fendo.2023.1120988 · PMID:37152925 · W4366401109
article OA: gold CC0 ⤵ 9 in-corpus citations
🔓 Open OA copy View on OpenAlex View on PubMed View at publisher
⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-08 ⓘ

This study profiled the endometrial metabolome in women with infertility, identifying lower polyunsaturated fatty acids in those with endometriosis and recurrent implantation failure, and suggesting Mediterranean Diet adherence influences this profile depending on uterine health.

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

⚙ AI-generated deep summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-08 ⓘ

This cross-sectional study analyzed whole receptive-phase (mid-secretory window of implantation) endometrial metabolomes in 45 infertile women with male factor infertility, unexplained infertility, recurrent implantation failure, or endometriosis, using untargeted UPLC–MS/MS and assessing Mediterranean Diet (MEDAS) adherence. Across 925 identified metabolites, lipids dominated, with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) particularly prevalent; women with endometriosis and recurrent implantation failure showed lower PUFA levels than women with male factor or unexplained infertility. The authors note a key caveat that the study’s cross-sectional design and relatively small subgroup sizes limit causal interpretation of associations between diet, metabolomic profiles, and infertility diagnoses. This paper is centrally about endometriosis — it directly profiles the receptive-phase endometrial whole metabolome in women with endometriosis and links lower PUFA-related metabolomic patterns to infertility-related conditions.

Read from the paper's body, not the abstract. Not a substitute for reading the paper. No clinical advice. How this works

Abstract

Introduction: Several metabolite classes have been identified in human endometrium, including lipids, nucleotides, amino acids, organic acids, and sugars. The first studies suggest the importance of metabolites in endometrial functions, as imbalance in uterine metabolites has been associated with low implantation rate and endometriosis. Nevertheless, most of studies have put emphasis on specific metabolite classes, and we lack the knowledge of the whole metabolome composition in human uterus. Further, a healthy dietary pattern has been shown to potentially protect against different endometrial dysfunctions and is a potential modulator of metabolomic composition and, consequently, the intrauterine microenvironment. The Mediterranean Diet (MD), characterized by a high intake of fruits, vegetables, cereals, nuts, legumes, fish, and olive oil, and a low consumption of meat, dairy products, and processed foods, has been associated with a wide range of benefits for health. Indeed, the MD pattern has displayed a beneficial role in endometriosis management and fertility; however, the relationship between the MD and the endometrial metabolome is still unknown. In our study, we set out to analyze receptive-phase endometrial metabolome profiles among women with infertility and their associations with MD. Methods: The study included women with male factor infertility (n=8), unexplained infertility (n=10), recurrent implantation failure (n=14), and endometriosis (n=13). The endometrial metabolome was analyzed with ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectroscopy (UPLC-MS/MS). The MD adherence of the participants was assessed using the 14-point MEDAS questionnaire of adherence to the MD. Results: We provide the whole metabolome profile of the endometrium, where 925 different metabolites were identified. Among these metabolites, lipids comprised the largest part, where polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) prevailed. Women with endometriosis and recurrent implantation failure were found to have lower levels of PUFAs compared to women with male factor and unexplained infertility (i.e., no clear endometrial alterations), identifying a metabolome profile associated with infertility diagnoses where altered endometrial functions are suspected. Moreover, MD adherence seemed to be associated with the endometrial metabolomic profile in a manner dependent on the health status of the uterus. Conclusion: The study findings provide insight into the molecular background of female infertility and lead to identification of potential molecular biomarkers and possibilities for modulating the endometrial microenvironment and, thereby, endometrial functions involved in embryo implantation and infertility.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Condition tags

mesh:D004715endometriosisinfertility

MeSH descriptors

Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Mediterranean

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 (46)

Cited by (9)

Source provenance

europepmc
last seen: 2026-06-04T01:30:01.192114+00:00
openalex
last seen: 2026-06-10T17:14:06.276822+00:00
pubmed
last seen: 2026-06-04T00:33:56.134770+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK