TLR4 Activation Promotes the Secretion of IL-8 Which Enhances the Invasion and Proliferation of Endometrial Stromal Cells in an Autocrine Manner via the FAK Signal Pathway

Xue-zhen Luo, Xuezhen Luo, Wen-jie Zhou, Wen‐Jie Zhou, Yu Tao, Tao Yu, Xiao-qiu Wang, Xiaoqiu Wang, Da-jin Li, Da‐Jin Li
American journal of reproductive immunology (New York, N.Y. : 1989) · 2015 · vol. 74(6) , pp. 467–479 · doi:10.1111/aji.12425 · PMID:26362992 · W1828615806
article OA: closed CC0 ⤵ 11 in-corpus citations
View on OpenAlex View on PubMed View at publisher
⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-10 ⓘ

TLR4 activation in endometrial stromal cells increases IL-8 secretion, which in turn enhances cell invasion and proliferation via FAK signaling.

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

Abstract

PROBLEM: Chronic inflammation is important for the occurrence of endometriosis, but the molecular mechanisms are still poorly understood. TLR4 is not only expressed on immune cells but is also present in the human endometrium, and its regulation might be crucial for the pathogenesis of endometriosis. METHOD OF STUDY: In this study, the expression of TLR4 in normal, eutopic endometrium, and ectopic tissues was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. The expression of the key molecules in endometrial stromal cells (ESCs) was assessed by in-cell Western assays. The invasion of eutopic ESCs from patients with endometriosis was evaluated by Matrigel invasion assay. The effects of CXCL8 on the proliferation of ESCs in vitro were assessed using BrdU assays. RESULTS: We found that the expression of TLR4 is higher in the eutopic endometrium than the normal endometrium and that ectopic tissue had the highest level of expression. TLR4 activation stimulated IL-8 secretion and the expression of its receptor CXCR1 in ESCs by activating p38/ERK, but not JNK and NK-κB signal pathways. IL-8 could enhance the invasion and proliferation of ESCs through the FAK signal pathway, and these effects could be abolished by an anti-CXCL8 neutralizing antibody or by a FAK inhibitor.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Condition tags

endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Choristoma Endometriosis Endometrium Focal Adhesion Kinase 1 Interleukin-8 Stromal Cells Toll-Like Receptor 4 Adult Autocrine Communication Cell Movement Cell Proliferation Cells, Cultured Endometriosis Endometrium Female Focal Adhesion Kinase 1 Humans Interleukin-8 Stromal Cells Toll-Like Receptor 4

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 (48)

Cited by (11)

Source provenance

europepmc
last seen: 2026-06-20T06:14:18.781669+00:00
openalex
last seen: 2026-06-10T17:14:06.276822+00:00
pubmed
last seen: 2026-05-13T22:17:39.907309+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK