Heme metabolism and HO‐1 in the pathogenesis and potential intervention of endometriosis

Ding-Yu Hou, Ding‐Yu Hou, Jia-Jing Lu, Jiajing Lu, Xing Zhang, Ayitila Abudukeyoumu, Ming‐Qing Li, Xiao‐Yong Zhu, Feng Xie
American journal of reproductive immunology (New York, N.Y. : 1989) · 2024 · vol. 91(5) , pp. e13855 · doi:10.1111/aji.13855 · PMID:38745499 · W4396939466
article OA: bronze CC0 ⤵ 1 in-corpus citation
🔓 Open OA copy View on OpenAlex View on PubMed View at publisher
⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-08 ⓘ

This paper explores how heme metabolism, particularly the enzyme HO-1, influences inflammation, invasion, and other processes in endometriosis pathogenesis, suggesting targets for therapeutic intervention.

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

Abstract

Endometriosis (EM) is one of the diseases related to retrograded menstruation and hemoglobin. Heme, released from hemoglobin, is degraded by heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1). In EM lesions, heme metabolites regulate processes such as inflammation, redox balance, autophagy, dysmenorrhea, malignancy, and invasion, where macrophages (Mø) play a fundamental role in their interactions. Regulation occurs at molecular, cellular, and pathological levels. Numerous studies suggest that heme is an indispensable component in EM and may contribute to its pathogenesis. The regulatory role of heme in EM encompasses cytokines, signaling pathways, and kinases that mediate cellular responses to external stimuli. HO-1, a catalytic enzyme in the catabolic phase of heme, mitigates heme's cytotoxicity in EM due to its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-proliferative properties. Certain compounds may intervene in EM by targeting heme metabolism, guiding the development of appropriate treatments for all stages of endometriosis.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Condition tags

endometriosisdysmenorrhea

MeSH descriptors

Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Heme Heme Heme Heme Heme Heme Heme Heme Heme Oxygenase-1 Heme Oxygenase-1 Heme Oxygenase-1

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 (100)

Cited by (1)

Source provenance

europepmc
last seen: 2026-06-11T06:19:48.454388+00:00
openalex
last seen: 2026-06-10T17:14:06.276822+00:00
pubmed
last seen: 2026-06-01T00:32:42.629583+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK