Oxidative Stress and Endometriosis

In: SpringerBriefs in Reproductive Biology · 2015 · pp. 23–36 · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-18308-4_4 · W2273149368
book-chapter OA: closed CC0 ⤵ 1 in-corpus citation
Full text JSON View on OpenAlex View at publisher
AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06+body, 2026-06-10

This review establishes oxidative stress as an imbalance between reactive oxygen species production and antioxidant defenses, impacting the pathogenesis of endometriosis.

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, 2026-06-10 · read from full text

This SpringerBriefs chapter reviews oxidative stress—an imbalance between reactive oxygen species production and antioxidant defenses—in relation to endometriosis, discussing mechanistic links and evidence from clinical, laboratory, and review studies. It synthesizes findings such as increased oxidative stress markers in peritoneal fluid and serum, altered redox systems involving thioredoxin pathways, and experimental work where antioxidant-related interventions and lipid/omega-3 modulation affect endometriosis models and related pain outcomes. The chapter’s main caveat is that the evidence base is heterogeneous and includes disparate study designs and biomarkers, so the causal direction and magnitude of effects can remain uncertain across studies. Relevance to endometriosis: the chapter’s entire focus is oxidative stress as a contributor to endometriosis pathogenesis and as reflected in multiple cited endometriosis studies, though it is not a single original experiment. This paper is centrally about endometriosis — it summarizes oxidative-stress mechanisms and evidence in endometriosis.

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

Full text 11,485 characters · extracted from oa-doi-fallback · 3 sections · click to expand

Abstract

Oxidative stress is the imbalance between the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and antioxidants. Access this chapter Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout Purchases are for personal use only Similar content being viewed by others

References

Augoulea, A., Alexandrou, A., Creatsa, M., Vrachnis, N., & Lambrinoudaki, I. (2012). Pathogenesis of endometriosis: The role of genetics, inflammation and oxidative stress. Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 286(1), 99–103. Banwell, K. M., Lane, M., Russell, D. L., Kind, K. L., & Thompson, J. G. (2007). Oxygen concentration during mouse oocyte in vitro maturation affects embryo and fetal development. Human Reproduction (Oxford, England), 22(10), 2768–2775. Polak, G., Wertel, I., Barczynski, B., Kwasniewski, W., Bednarek, W., & Kotarski, J. (2013). Increased levels of oxidative stress markers in the peritoneal fluid of women with endometriosis. European Journal of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Biology, 168(2), 187–190. Christodoulakos, G., Augoulea, A., Lambrinoudaki, I., Sioulas, V., & Creatsas, G. (2007). Pathogenesis of endometriosis: The role of defective ‘immunosurveillance’. The European Journal of Contraception & Reproductive Health Care, 12(3), 194–202. Ota, H., Igarashi, S., Sato, N., Tanaka, H., & Tanaka, T. (2002). Involvement of catalase in the endometrium of patients with endometriosis and adenomyosis. Fertility and Sterility, 78(4), 804–809. Khorram, O., & Lessey, B. A. (2002). Alterations in expression of endometrial endothelial nitric oxide synthase and alpha(v)beta(3) integrin in women with endometriosis. Fertility and Sterility, 78(4), 860–864. Santanam, N., Song, M., Rong, R., Murphy, A. A., & Parthasarathy, S. (2002). Atherosclerosis, oxidation and endometriosis. Free Radical Research, 36(12), 1315–1321. Asante, A., & Taylor, R. N. (2011). Endometriosis: The role of neuroangiogenesis. Annual Review of Physiology, 73, 163–182. Falcone, T., & Lebovic, D. I. (2011). Clinical management of endometriosis. Obstetrics and Gynecology, 118(3), 691–705. Berkkanoglu, M., & Arici, A. (2003). Immunology and endometriosis. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology, 50(1), 48–59. Oosterlynck, D. J., Cornillie, F. J., Waer, M., Vandeputte, M., & Koninckx, P. R. (1991). Women with endometriosis show a defect in natural killer activity resulting in a decreased cytotoxicity to autologous endometrium. Fertility and Sterility, 56(1), 45–51. Kyama, C. M., Debrock, S., Mwenda, J. M., & D’Hooghe, T. M. (2003). Potential involvement of the immune system in the development of endometriosis. Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, 1, 123. Wu, M. H., Yang, B. C., Lee, Y. C., Wu, P. L., & Hsu, C. C. (2004). The differential expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and regulation by interferon-gamma during the pathogenesis of endometriosis. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology, 51(5), 373–380. Vigano, P., Gaffuri, B., Somigliana, E., Busacca, M., Di Blasio, A. M., & Vignali, M. (1998). Expression of intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1 mRNA and protein is enhanced in endometriosis versus endometrial stromal cells in culture. Molecular Human Reproduction, 4(12), 1150–1156. Becker, J. C., Termeer, C., Schmidt, R. E., & Brocker, E. B. (1993). Soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 inhibits MHC-restricted specific T cell/tumor interaction. The Journal of Immunology, 151(12), 7224–7232. Giudice, L. C. (1994). Growth factors and growth modulators in human uterine endometrium: Their potential relevance to reproductive medicine. Fertility and Sterility, 61(1), 1–17. Harada, T., Iwabe, T., & Terakawa, N. (2001). Role of cytokines in endometriosis. Fertility and Sterility, 76(1), 1–10. Hsu, C. C., Yang, B. C., Wu, M. H., & Huang, K. E. (1997). Enhanced interleukin-4 expression in patients with endometriosis. Fertility and Sterility, 67(6), 1059–1064. Somigliana, E., Vigano, P., Gaffuri, B., Candiani, M., Busacca, M., Di Blasio, A. M., et al. (1996). Modulation of NK cell lytic function by endometrial secretory factors: Potential role in endometriosis. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology, 36(5), 295–300. Seli, E., & Arici, A. (2003). Endometriosis: Interaction of immune and endocrine systems. Seminars in Reproductive Medicine, 21(2), 135–144. Milewski, L., Dziunycz, P., Barcz, E., Radomski, D., Roszkowski, P. I., Korczak-Kowalska, G., et al. (2011). Increased levels of human neutrophil peptides 1, 2, and 3 in peritoneal fluid of patients with endometriosis: Association with neutrophils, T cells and IL-8. Journal of Reproductive Immunology, 91(1–2), 64–70. Gazvani, R., & Templeton, A. (2002). Peritoneal environment, cytokines and angiogenesis in the pathophysiology of endometriosis. Reproduction, 123(2), 217–226. Dalton, T. P., Shertzer, H. G., & Puga, A. (1999). Regulation of gene expression by reactive oxygen. Annual Review of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 39, 67–101. Agarwal, A., Aponte-Mellado, A., Premkumar, B. J., Shaman, A., & Gupta, S. (2012). The effects of oxidative stress on female reproduction: A review. Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, 10, 49. Van Langendonckt, A., Casanas-Roux, F., & Donnez, J. (2002). Oxidative stress and peritoneal endometriosis. Fertility and Sterility, 77(5), 861–870. Carvalho, L. F., Abrao, M. S., Biscotti, C., Sharma, R., Nutter, B., & Falcone, T. (2013). Oxidative cell injury as a predictor of endometriosis progression. Reproductive Sciences, 20(6), 688–698. Altman, G. B., Gown, A. M., Luchtel, D. L., & Baker, C. (1999). RANTES production by cultured primate endometrial epithelial cells. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology, 42(3), 168–174. Yeaman, G. R., Collins, J. E., & Lang, G. A. (2002). Autoantibody responses to carbohydrate epitopes in endometriosis. The Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 955, 174–182. discussion 199–200, 396–406. Carvalho, L. F., Samadder, A. N., Agarwal, A., Fernandes, L. F., & Abrao, M. S. (2012). Oxidative stress biomarkers in patients with endometriosis: Systematic review. Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 286(4), 1033–1040. Moncada, S., & Higgs, A. (1993). The L-arginine-nitric oxide pathway. The New England Journal of Medicine, 329(27), 2002–2012. Pirdel, L., & Pirdel, M. (2014). Role of iron overload-induced macrophage apoptosis in the pathogenesis of peritoneal endometriosis. Reproduction, 147(6), R199–R207. Rosa e Silva, J. C., do Amara, V. F., Mendonca, J. L., Rosa e Silva, A. C., Nakao, L. S., Poli Neto, O. B., et al. (2014). Serum markers of oxidative stress and endometriosis. Clinical and Experimental Obstetrics and Gynecology, 41(4), 371–374. Andrade, A. Z., Rodrigues, J. K., Dib, L. A., Romao, G. S., Ferriani, R. A., Jordao Junior, A. A., et al. (2010). Serum markers of oxidative stress in infertile women with endometriosis. Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia, 32(6), 279–285. Lambrinoudaki, I. V., Augoulea, A., Christodoulakos, G. E., Economou, E. V., Kaparos, G., Kontoravdis, A., et al. (2009). Measurable serum markers of oxidative stress response in women with endometriosis. Fertility and Sterility, 91(1), 46–50. Nishiyama, A., Matsui, M., Iwata, S., Hirota, K., Masutani, H., Nakamura, H., et al. (1999). Identification of thioredoxin-binding protein-2/vitamin D(3) up-regulated protein 1 as a negative regulator of thioredoxin function and expression. The Journal of Biological Chemistry, 274(31), 21645–21650. Choi, Y. S., Cho, S., Seo, S. K., Park, J. H., Kim, S. H., & Lee, B. S. (2015). Alteration of the intrafollicular thiol-redox system in infertile women with endometriosis. Reproduction, 149(2), 155–162. Seo, S. K., Yang, H. I., Lee, K. E., Kim, H. Y., Cho, S., Choi, Y. S., et al. (2010). The roles of thioredoxin and thioredoxin-binding protein-2 in endometriosis. Human Reproduction (Oxford, England), 25(5), 1251–1258. Watanabe, R., Nakamura, H., Masutani, H., & Yodoi, J. (2010). Anti-oxidative, anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory actions by thioredoxin 1 and thioredoxin-binding protein-2. Pharmacology and Therapeutics, 127(3), 261–270. Alpay, Z., Saed, G. M., & Diamond, M. P. (2006). Female infertility and free radicals: Potential role in adhesions and endometriosis. Journal of the Society for Gynecologic Investigation, 13(6), 390–398. Santanam, N., Kavtaradze, N., Murphy, A., Dominguez, C., & Parthasarathy, S. (2013). Antioxidant supplementation reduces endometriosis-related pelvic pain in humans. Translational Research, 161(3), 189–195. Rokyta, R., Holecek, V., Pekarkova, I., Krejcova, J., Racek, J., Trefil, L., et al. (2003). Free radicals after painful stimulation are influenced by antioxidants and analgesics. Neuro Endocrinology Letters, 24(5), 304–309. Szczepanska, M., Kozlik, J., Skrzypczak, J., & Mikolajczyk, M. (2003). Oxidative stress may be a piece in the endometriosis puzzle. Fertility and Sterility, 79(6), 1288–1293. Parazzini, F., Chiaffarino, F., Surace, M., Chatenoud, L., Cipriani, S., Chiantera, V., et al. (2004). Selected food intake and risk of endometriosis. Human Reproduction (Oxford, England), 19(8), 1755–1759. Mier-Cabrera, J., Genera-Garcia, M., De la Jara-Diaz, J., Perichart-Perera, O., Vadillo-Ortega, F., & Hernandez-Guerrero, C. (2008). Effect of vitamins C and E supplementation on peripheral oxidative stress markers and pregnancy rate in women with endometriosis. International Journal of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, 100(3), 252–256. Blomhoff, R. (1994). Transport and metabolism of vitamin A. Nutrition Reviews, 52(2 Pt 2), S13–S23. Altan, Z. M., Denis, D., Kagan, D., Grund, E. M., Palmer, S. S., & Nataraja, S. G. (2010). A long-acting tumor necrosis factor alpha-binding protein demonstrates activity in both in vitro and in vivo models of endometriosis. The Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 334(2), 460–466. Schwertner, A., Conceicao Dos Santos, C. C., Costa, G. D., Deitos, A., de Souza, A., de Souza, I. C., et al. (2013). Efficacy of melatonin in the treatment of endometriosis: A phase II, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Pain, 154(6), 874–881. Tomio, K., Kawana, K., Taguchi, A., Isobe, Y., Iwamoto, R., Yamashita, A., et al. (2013). Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids suppress the cystic lesion formation of peritoneal endometriosis in transgenic mouse models. PLoS One, 8(9), e73085. Trabert, B., Peters, U., De Roos, A. J., Scholes, D., & Holt, V. L. (2011). Diet and risk of endometriosis in a population-based case-control study. The British Journal of Nutrition, 105(3), 459–467. Parazzini, F., Vigano, P., Candiani, M., & Fedele, L. (2013). Diet and endometriosis risk: A literature review. Reproductive Biomedicine Online, 26(4), 323–336. Author information Authors and Affiliations Corresponding author Rights and permissions Copyright information © 2015 The Author(s) About this chapter Cite this chapter Gupta, S., Harlev, A., Agarwal, A., Al Safaar, A., Gupta, A., Hack, G. (2015). Oxidative Stress and Endometriosis. In: Endometriosis. SpringerBriefs in Reproductive Biology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-18308-4_4 Download citation DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-18308-4_4 Publisher Name: Springer, Cham Print ISBN: 978-3-319-18307-7 Online ISBN: 978-3-319-18308-4 eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Keywords

These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

Text is read by the "Ask this paper" AI Q&A widget below. Extraction quality varies by source — PMC NXML preserves structure cleanly, OA-HTML may include some navigation residue, and OA-PDF can have broken hyphenation. The publisher copy (via DOI) is the canonical version.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Ask this paper AI returns verbatim quotes from the full text · source: oa-doi-fallback

Answers must be backed by verbatim quotes from this paper's full text. Hallucinated quotes are dropped automatically; if no verbatim passage answers the question, we say so. How this works

Condition tags

endometriosis

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 (51)

Cited by (1)

Source provenance

openalex
last seen: 2026-06-10T17:14:06.276822+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK