Investigation of integrin α_5 and integrin β_3 in endometriosis

Objective:To study the expression of integrin α_5,β_3 in eutopic endometrium and ectopic endometrium of endometriosis. Methods:Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR) method was utilized to detect and quantitate integrin α_5,β_3 mRNA expression levels in eutopic and ectopic endometrial tissues from 18 patients with endometriosis and the endometrial tissues from 18 non-endometriosis women.Serum concentration of estradiol(E_2),progesterone(P) and CA125 were measured by radioimmunoassay.AFS-r marking was used to describe the state of pelvic cavity during operation. Results:Various levels of positive expression of integrin subunits α_5,β_3 were shown in both eutopic and ectopic endometrial tissues of endometriosis and the endometrium of non-endometriosis.The expressions of integrin α_5 mRNA in eutopic endometrium,ectopic endometrium of endometriosis group and endometrium of control group were as 0.773±0.113,1.077±0.032,0.924±0.120,respectively.(Among) the groups,the differences were statistically significant(P0.05).The expression of integrin β_3 mRNA in eutopic endometrium,ectopic endometrium of endometriosis group and endometrium of control group were as 0.653±0.080,0.963±0.132,0.763±0.090,respectively.Among the groups,the diferences were statistically significant(P0.05).Serum concentration of E_2 in study group was positively correlated with integrin α_5,β_3(r=0.793,0.917,P0.05).There were no relations between serum concentration of P and integrin α_5,β_3(P0.05).Both CA125 level and AFS-r were positively correlated with integrin α_5,β_3(P0.05). Conclusion:The high expression of integrin α_5,β_3 in ectopic endometrium might play an important role in the development of endometriosis adherence.Estradiol may regulate the expression of integrin α_5,β_3.