Effect of simvastatin on baboon endometriosis†

Hugh S Taylor, Myles H. Alderman, Myles Alderman Iii, Thomas M D'Hooghe, Thomas D’Hooghe, Asgerally T Fazleabas, Antoni J. Dulęba, Antoni J Duleba
Biology of reproduction · 2017 · vol. 97(1) , pp. 32–38 · doi:10.1093/biolre/iox058 · PMID:28637327 · W2626864960
article OA: bronze CC0 ⤵ 30 in-corpus citations
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-08 ⓘ

Simvastatin treatment in baboons significantly reduced the volume and proliferation of endometriotic lesions while modulating estrogen receptor expression and decreasing inflammation.

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Abstract

Endometriosis, a common disorder affecting women of reproductive age, is characterized by ectopic growth of the endometrial tissues, altered steroid hormone response, and inflammation. Previous studies revealed that statins, selective inhibitors of the key step of mevalonate pathway, inhibit growth of endometrial stromal cells in vitro and reduce endometriotic lesions in murine models of endometriosis. This study evaluated the effects of simvastatin on the development of endometriosis in a baboon model of this disease. Sixteen baboons were randomly assigned to the treatment group (simvastatin, 20 mg daily) or to the control group. Endometriotic lesions were evaluated by laparoscopy after 3 months. The volume of red, orange-red, and white endometriotic lesions was significantly reduced by 78% in animals treated with simvastatin. The expression of a marker of proliferation, proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), was significantly reduced in animals receiving simvastatin in red lesions, white lesions, black lesions, and in adhesions. Simvastatin was also associated with an increase in the expression of estrogen receptor alpha in red lesions, and a decrease in the expression of estrogen receptor beta in black lesions, in adhesions, and in eutopic endometrium. Furthermore, simvastatin significantly reduced the expression of neopterin, a marker of inflammation, oxidative stress, and immune system activation. Collectively, the present findings indicate that the inhibition of the mevalonate pathway by simvastatin reduces the risk of developing endometriosis in the primate model of this disease by decreasing the growth of endometrial lesions, by modulating the expression of genes encoding for estrogen receptors, and by reducing inflammation.

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Condition tags

mesh:D004715endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Endometriosis Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors Papio Simvastatin Animals Disease Models, Animal Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometrium Endometrium Estrogen Receptor alpha Estrogen Receptor alpha Estrogen Receptor alpha Estrogen Receptor beta Estrogen Receptor beta Estrogen Receptor beta Female Gene Expression Regulation Gene Expression Regulation Gene Expression Regulation

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License: CC0 · commercial use OK