PIWIL2 is overexpressed in adenomyotic lesions of women with diffuse adenomyosis

Purpose Adenomyosis has been studied throughout the years, however, its aetiology and physiopathology are still unknown. The aim of this study was to identify the presence of PIWI proteins in women with adenomyosis.

We included 72 participants to be part of this study and were divided into two groups based on their anatomopathological diagnosis, control (n = 36) or adenomyosis (n = 36). All samples were tested for PIWIL1, PIWIL2 and PIWIL4 proteins by immunohistochemistry. The evaluation of protein expression was performed by the digital histological score (DHSCORE) and by the pathologist’s analysis.

The participants had a mean age of 44.28 ± 5.76 years and 45.81 ± 4.86 years in the control and adenomyosis groups, respectively (p ≥ 0.05). Other clinical characteristics of the participants showed no statistical difference as well. PIWIL2 is highly expressed in the adenomyosis in comparison to the control group (p = 0.0001). The PIWIL1 is downregulated in the adenomyosis (p = 0.003) and PIWIL4 showed no difference in its expression (p = 0.05).

PIWIL2 might be involved in cellular survival and PIWIL1 may be downregulated due to the loss of tissue’s function and response to the hostile environment of the myometrium. This is the first time that PIWI proteins are studied in the adenomyosis. Similar content being viewed by others Data availability The datasets used and analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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We would like to acknowledge the UPE from Centro de Pesquisa Experimental from Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre that ensured the viability of the experiments by providing the laboratory’s structure and logistics for it to succeed. Funding The Fundação Médica do Rio Grande do Sul, Fundação Incentivo à Pesquisa e Eventos (FIPE) from Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, CNPq and Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (Capes) funded this study. Author information Authors and Affiliations Contributions MMCM and JSLCF were responsible for the planning and execution of the project, data collection/analysis, statistical analysis, and draft of the manuscript. VKG and CABS were responsible for data collection, execution of the experiments and draft of the manuscript. PRO was responsible for ethical committee approval, planning of the project and draft of the manuscript. ACPF was responsible for participants’ selection, analysis of the immunohistochemistry results and draft of the manuscript. Corresponding author Ethics declarations Conflict of interests The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Consent to participate All participants signed an informed consent form to be part in the study. Ethics approval This study was approved by the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre’s (HCPA) ethics committee, and it is registered under number 16-0639 and CAAE: 63591516.0.0000.5327 at Plataforma Brasil. Additional information Publisher's Note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Rights and permissions About this article Cite this article Mattia, M.M.C., Fernandes, A.C.P., Genro, V.K. et al. PIWIL2 is overexpressed in adenomyotic lesions of women with diffuse adenomyosis. Arch Gynecol Obstet 302, 925–933 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-020-05660-w Received: Accepted: Published: Version of record: Issue date: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-020-05660-w