• 대한세포병리학회지
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• 제13권1호
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• pp.1-7
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• 2002

The significance of endometrial cells on cervicovaginal smears is underestimated. The aim of this study is to evaluate the detection rate of endometrial cells on cervicovaginal smears. The materials consisted of two groups. Group I was 701 cervicovaginal smears from patients with no gynecological problems. Group II was 208 cervicovaginal smears from patients with abnormal uterine bleeding followed by endometrial curettage; 31 cases of endometrial adenocarclnoma(CA), 19 cases of endometrial hyperplasia(HP), 83 cases of dysfunctional uterine bleeding(DUB), and 75 cases of normal endometrium. Cervicovaginal smears were reviewed according to the criteria of The Bethesda System. Endometrial cells were identified in 15 of 701 cases(2.1%) in group I and 64 of 208 cases(30.8%) in group II. Among group II, detection rate of endometrial cells was the highest in CA (51.6%) compared to HP(26.3%), DUB(41.0%), and normal endometrium(12.0%) (p<0.05). Cytologic atypia of endometrial cells was not found In group I, but was more frequently identified in CA(87.5%) than in HP(10.5%) or DUB(14.7%) (p<0.05). Exfollatlon of endometrial cells might be related to abnormal endometrial lesion, and reporting of endometrial cells in the cervicovaginal smear may increase a chance to detect endometrial lesions especially in patients with abnormal uterine bleeding.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• 제23권2호
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• pp.14.1-14.14
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• 2023

Immune status including the immune cells and cytokine profiles has been implicated in the development of endometriosis. In this study, we analyzed Th17 cells and IL-17A in peritoneal fluid (PF) and endometrial tissues of patients with (n=10) and without (n=26) endometriosis. Our study has shown increased Th17 cell population and IL-17A level in PF with endometriosis patients. To determine the roles of IL-17A and Th17 cells in the development of endometriosis, the effect of IL-17A, major cytokine of Th17, on endometrial cells isolated from endometriotic tissues was examined. Recombinant IL-17A promoted survival of endometrial cells accompanied by increased expression of anti-apoptotic genes, including Bcl-2 and MCL1, and the activation of ERK1/2 signaling. In addition, treatment of IL-17A to endometrial cells inhibited NK cell mediated cytotoxicity and induced HLA-G expression on endometrial cells. IL-17A also promoted migration of endometrial cells. Our data suggest that Th17 cells and IL-17A play critical roles in the development of endometriosis by promoting endometrial cell survival and conferring a resistance to NK cell cytotoxicity through the activation of ERK1/2 signaling. Targeting IL-17A has potential as a new strategy for the treatment of endometriosis.

• 한국수정란이식학회지
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• 제31권1호
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• pp.73-80
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• 2016

An in vitro assay following culture of endometrial epithelial cells is essential for understanding epithelial cell function in reproduction. Several diverse techniques have been developed for isolating endometrial epithelial cells, although an optimal technique has not been identified. In this study, we describe a sedimentation-adherence (S-A) isolation technique with a high-yield cell-separating ability to isolate endometrial epithelial cells from 8-week-old female C57BL/6 mice. We analyzed total cell number, viability, morphology, and expression of cytokeratin 18 as an endometrial epithelial cell-specific marker in cells isolated using a mechanical method compared to the S-A technique. There were no significant differences in the total number, viability, or morphology of the putative endometrial epithelial cells with either method. In contrast, significantly more endometrial epithelial cells harvested using the S-A method were positively stained for cytokeratin 18 than those isolated using the mechanical method. These results confirm that the S-A method is more efficient for retrieving endometrial epithelial cells than a mechanical method.

• BMB Reports
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• 제50권8호
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• pp.429-434
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• 2017

Endometriosis is the abnormal growth of endometrial cells outside the uterus, causing pelvic pain and infertility. Furthermore, adhesion of endometrial tissue fragments to pelvic mesothelium is required for the initial step of endometriosis formation outside uterus. $TGF-{\beta}1$ and adhesion molecules importantly function for adhesion of endometrial tissue fragments to mesothelium outside uterus. However, the function of $TGF-{\beta}1$ on the regulation of adhesion molecule expression for adhesion of endometrial tissue fragments to mesothelium has not been fully elucidated. Interestingly, transforming growth factor ${\beta}1$ ($TGF-{\beta}1$) expression was higher in endometriotic epithelial cells than in normal endometrial cells. The adhesion efficiency of endometriotic epithelial cells to mesothelial cells was also higher than that of normal endometrial cells. Moreover, $TGF-{\beta}1$ directly induced the adhesion of endometrial cells to mesothelial cells through the regulation of integrin of ${\alpha}V$, ${\alpha}6$, ${\beta}1$, and ${\beta}4$ via the activation of the $TGF-{\beta}1/TGF-{\beta}RI/Smad2$ signaling pathway. Conversely, the adhesion of $TGF-{\beta}1-stimulated$ endometrial cells to mesothelial cells was clearly reduced following treatment with neutralizing antibodies against specific $TGF-{\beta}1-mediated$ integrins ${\alpha}V$, ${\beta}1$, and ${\beta}4$ on the endometrial cell membrane. Taken together, these results suggest that $TGF-{\beta}1$ may act to promote the initiation of endometriosis by enhancing integrin-mediated cell-cell adhesion.

• 한국동물위생학회지
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• 제46권2호
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• pp.157-160
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• 2023

Endometrial tissue is a known source of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). We isolated canine endometrial stem cells from canine endometrial tissues using an enzymatic method and confirmed the immunophenotype of mesenchymal stem cells and multilineage differentiation. Canine endometrial tissues were obtained from canine ovariohysterectomy surgery and isolated using 0.2% collagenase type I. We measured the immunophenotype of stem cells using flow cytometry. To confirm the differentiation ability, a trilineage differentiation assay was conducted. In this study, canine endometrialderived MSCs (cEM-MSCs) were isolated by enzyme treatment and showed a spindle-shaped morphology under a microscope. Moreover, cEM-MSCs showed a trilineage differentiation ability. In this study, the canine endometrium was a good source of MSCs.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• 제18권12호
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• pp.1708-1714
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• 2005

Keratinocyte growth factor (KGF) functions in epithelial growth and differentiation in many tissues and organs. KGF is expressed in the uterine endometrial epithelial cells during the estrous cycle and pregnancy in pigs, and receptors for KGF (KGFR) are expressed by conceptus trophectoderm and endometrial epithelia. KGF has been shown to stimulate the proliferation and differentiation of conceptus trophectoderm. However, the role of KGF on the endometrial epithelial cells has not been determined. Therefore, this study determined the effect of KGF on proliferation and differentiation of endometrial epithelial cells in vitro and in vivo using an immortalized porcine luminal epithelial (pLE) cell line and KGF infusion into the uterine lumen of pigs between Days 9 and 12 of estrous cycle. Results showed that KGF did not stimulate proliferation of uterine endometrial epithelial cells in vitro and in vivo determined by the $^3$H]thymidine incorporation assay and the proliferating cell nuclear antigen staining, respectively. Effects of KGF on expression of several markers for epithelial cell differentiation, including integrin receptor subunits $\alpha$4, $\alpha$5 and $\beta$1, plasmin/trypsin inhibitor, uteroferrin and retinol-binding protein were determined by RT-PCR, Northern and slot blot analyses, and immunohistochemisty, and KGF did not affect epithelial cell differentiation in vitro and in vivo. These results show that KGF does not induce epithelial cell proliferation and differentiation, suggesting that KGF produced by endometrial epithelial cells acts on conceptus trophectoderm in a paracrine manner rather than on endometrial epithelial cells in an autocrine manner.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• 제26권1호
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• pp.1-8
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• 1999

In order to study the implantation mechanism various methods for culture of endometrial cells in vitro have been attempted. However, a disadvantage is that primary cultures of stromal and epithelial cells do not have the ability to differentiate, and therefore cannot be reproduced in the same manner as in vivo endometrium. The object of this study is to establish a three dimensional culture of endometrial cells which are both morphologically and functionally identical to in vivo endometrium. Endometrial tissues obtained after hysterectomies were cut into thin slices and treated with collagenase and trypsin-EDTA. The stromal cells and the epithelial cells were separated by centrifugation and cultured for 24 hours in DMEM media containing 10% FCS, 100 nM progesterone, and 1 nM estradiol. The cultured stromal cells were mixed with collagen gel and solidified, after which it was covered with matrigel. Epithelial cells were inoculated on the top and then cultured for 3 days. The three dimensionally cultured endometrial cells were stained for integrin ${\alpha}1,\;{\alpha}4,\;{\beta}3$, and cyclooxygenase-l, -2 by immunohistochemistry, which all showed strong expression. The cultured epithelial cells showed the formation of microvilli, tight junctions and pinopodes by electron microscopy. Studies are currently under way utilizing this three dimensional culture model to ascertain the interaction between the embryo and human endometrial cells at the time of implantation, and it is thought that further studies into a new culture environment which would allow longer periods of culture will be necessary.

• Experimental and Molecular Medicine
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• 제50권12호
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• pp.9.1-9.12
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• 2018

Endometriosis is a disease characterized by implants of endometrial tissue outside the uterine cavity and is strongly associated with infertility. Focal adhesion of endometrial tissue to the peritoneum is an indication of incipient endometriosis. In this study, we examined the effect of various cytokines that are known to be involved in the pathology of endometriosis on endometrial cell adhesion. Among the investigated cytokines, transforming growth factor-${\beta}1$ ($TGF-{\beta}1$) increased adhesion of endometrial cells to the mesothelium through induction of ${\alpha}2-6$ sialylation. The expression levels of ${\beta}$-galactoside ${\alpha}2-6$ sialyltransferase (ST6Gal) 1 and ST6Gal2 were increased through activation of $TGF-{\beta}RI/SMAD2/3$ signaling in endometrial cells. In addition, we discovered that terminal sialic acid glycan epitopes of endometrial cells engage with sialic acid-binding immunoglobulin-like lectin-9 expressed on mesothelial cell surfaces. Interestingly, in an in vivo mouse endometriosis model, inhibition of endogenous sialic acid binding by a $NeuAc{\alpha}2-6Gal{\beta}1$-4GlcNAc injection diminished $TGF-{\beta}1$-induced formation of endometriosis lesions. Based on these results, we suggest that increased sialylation of endometrial cells by $TGF-{\beta}1$ promotes the attachment of endometrium to the peritoneum, encouraging endometriosis outbreaks.

• 한국독성학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국독성학회 2003년도 추계학술대회
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• pp.122-122
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• 2003

Endometrial tissue is an interesting model for intrinsic and extrinsic factors, ie hormones and growth factors, involved in its normal pathologic development and its cyclic growth. The endometrial cells were isolated from endometrial tissue of the proliferative phase obtained by hysterectomy and separated stromal and epithelial cells.(omitted)

• 한국수정란이식학회지
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• 제22권3호
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• pp.149-154
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• 2007

임신의 성립 및 유지에 중요한 역할을 하는 자궁내막세포에 $K_{2P}$ 통로의 존재를 확인하기 위하여 본 연구를 수행하였다. $K_{2P}$ 통로는 일반적으로 중추신경계에 풍부하게 존재하면서 세포의 안정막 전압을 유지시킨다. 역전사 중합 효소 중합 반응과 면역 세포 화학 염색 방법을 이용하여 자궁내막세포에 존재하는 $K_{2P}$ 통로를 조사한 결과, TASK-1, TASK-3, TREK-1, TREK-2 및 TRAAK의 발현이 확인되었다. TASK-3와 TREK-1은 핵을 포함한 세포 전역에 발현하였고, TREK-2와 TRAAK은 핵을 제외한 세포 전역에 발현하였다. 그러나 자궁내막염이 있는 자궁내막세포와 정상 자궁내막세포에서 $K_{2P}$ 통로의 발현 변화를 비교한 결과, 두 군간의 mRNA 발현 수준이 변화하지 않았다. 본 연구는 한우의 자궁내막세포에서 $K_{2P}$ 통로의 존재를 처음으로 보고하는데, 이를 통하여 한우의 자궁내막세포에서 확인된 $K_{2P}$ 통로들은 자궁의 생리 작용과 자궁암 등과 같은 여러 자궁 관련 질병에 관여할 가능성이 높을 것으로 생각된다.