• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.695-701
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• 1999

The hypothalamus is the classic site of synthesis of arginine vasotocin as neurohypophyseal hormone in the chicken. However, high concentrations of arginine vasotocin were also measured in ovarian tissues by radioimmunoassay. At first, we observed specific positive signal of mRNA encoding AVT in the hypothalamus by Northern hybridization. However, we could not find any specific bands in ovarian and uterine tissues. For evidence of transcription of the arginine vasotocin gene ingonadal tissues of the chicken, this study has applied the polymerase chain reaction as a highly sensitive assay. The hypothalamus, the four largest preovulatory ovarian follicles and the shell gland (uterus) were collected at 4 h and 20 h before oviposition. The ovarian follicular tissues were separated into granulose theca interns and theca externa layers. The uterine tissues were separated into myometrium and endometrium The extracted mRNA was converted to cDNA by reverse-transcriptase using oligo-$d(T)_{15}$ primer. Then, the cDNA was amplified by Vent polymerase and arginine vasotocin specific primers. The amplification reaction was incubated by 30 cycles successively, $95^{\circ}C$, $55^{\circ}C$ and $72^{\circ}C$ earth for 1 min. Te comparisons of the mRNA levels encoding arginine vasotocin between the tissues were determined by semi-quantification methods. After amplification of the cDNA, the PCR products were detected in hypothalamus, ovarian tissues and uterine tissues. The results of semi-quantification showed that the levels of arginine vasotocin mRNA in ovarian iud uterine tissues were about from 1/50 to 1/1000 when compared to that in the hypothalamus. The very low levels of mRNA encoding arginine vasotocin in ovarian and uterine tissues probably led us to conclude that arginine vasotocin may play a role of local mediate acting autocrine and/or paracrine.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.81-91
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• 1989

It has been suggested that the prognosis for fertility of the infertile patients with healed pelvic tuberculosis is very poor. Total 60 patients(77 cycles) with previous history of pelvic tuberculosis who underwent IVF-ET from January 1988 to March 1989 at SNUH were classified into three groups according to the principal histopathological lesions : tuberculous endometritis group(N=20, 28 cycles), tuberculous salpingitis group(N=32, 37 cycles) and pelvic peritoneal tuberculosis group(N=8, 12 cycles). To evaluate the effects of previous pelvic tuberculous lesions on ovarian follicular growth and development in controlled ovarian hyperstimulation for IVF-ET and its final outcome, serum E2 levels on the day of hCG administration(Day 0) and the day after hCG administration(Day +1), the number of ovarian follicles with mean diamete ${\geqq}$ 12 mm on Day 0, the number of oocytes retrieved by transvaginal aspiration, and pregnancy rate per cycle were measured and compared with control group(N=123, 161 cycles). There were no significant differences in cancellation rate during controlled ovarian hyperstimulation, total dosage of FSH and hMG administrated, menstrual cycle date(MCD) of hCG injection, serum E2 levels, the number of ovarian follicles with mean diameter ${\geqq}$ 15 mm, and the number of oocytes retrieved between pelvic tuberculosis group and control group. But in pelvic tuberculosis group, the number of ovarian follicles with mean diameter 12-14 mm, total number of ovarian follicles(${\geqq}$ 12 mm), and pregnancy rate per cycle were significantly decreased. These data suggest that previous pelvic tuberculous lesions have no significant adverse effects on the ovarian response to gonadotropin stimulation. IVF-ET proved to be an useful treatment modality for infertile patients with previous history of pelvic tuberculosis in spite of its relatively lowered pregnancy rate.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.2777-2783
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• 2014

The purpose of this study was to explore the expression of ATAD2 in ovarian tumor tissue as well as its relationship with degree of malignancy. Tumor tissue from 110 cases of ovarian cancer was collected in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki for evaluation of ATAD2 expression iimmunohistochemistry, quantitative PCR (qPCR) and Western blotting. The correlation between the ATAD2 expression and and the prognosis of ovarian cancer was evaluated by Cox regression model. In addition, HO-8910 and OVCAR-3 cells were transfected with two siRNAs targeting ATAD2. Cell viability was evaluated with MTT assay, and cell migration by transwell migration assay. ATAD2 was shown to be highly expressed in 65.5% (72/110) of ovarian cancer cases, both at transcriptional and protein levels. Moreover, highly expression was positively correlated with degree of malignancy. Knock-down of ATAD2 in HO-8910 and OVCAR-3 cells was found to reduce cell migration. In addition, follow-up visits of the patients demonstrated that the 5-year survival rate was lower in patients with high expression of ATAD2. Our study suggested that ovarian tumor tissue may have highly expressed ATAD2, which is associated with tumor stage, omentum-metastasis, ascites and CA-125. Increased ATAD2 may play important roles in tumor proliferation and migration. ATAD2 could serve in particular as a prognostic marker and a therapeutic target for ovarian cancer.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.22
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• pp.9781-9784
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• 2014

Background: The study aimed to evaluate changes in hematologic parameters, including white blood cell, platelet count, platelet indices, the platelet to lymphocyte and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratios in patients with early and advanced stages of epithelial ovarian cancers. Materials and Methods: The study included 100 patients with epithelial ovarian cancer who underwent primary staging exploratory laparotomy. Preoperative hematologic parameters, tumor histopathologic type, grade, stage and serum CA-125 levels were retrospectively analyzed. These parameters were compared between the patients with early (stage I-II) and advanced (stage III-IV) ovarian cancer. Results: White blood cell count and platelet indices, including mean platelet volume, platelet distribution width and platelet crit did not show a statistically significant difference between groups with early and advanced ovarian cancer. However, the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, platelet count, the platelet to lymphocyte ratio and CA-125 level showed a statistically significant difference between the two groups (p<0.05, p<0.01, p<0.001, p<0.01 respectively). Conclusions: It was found that the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, platelet count and the platelet to lymphocyte ratio increased with the increasing stage of ovarian cancer. Furthermore, it was seen that the platelet to lymphocyte ratio is an independent prognostic factor related to the stage of epithelial ovarian cancer.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.43-51
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• 2018

Although cisplatin is one of the most effective antitumor drugs for ovarian cancer, the emergence of chemoresistance to cisplatin in over 80% of initially responsive patients is a major barrier to successful therapy. The precise mechanisms underlying the development of cisplatin resistance are not fully understood, but alteration of DNA methylation associated with aberrant gene silencing may play a role. To identify epigenetically regulated genes directly associated with ovarian cancer cisplatin resistance, we compared the expression and methylation profiles of cisplatin-sensitive and -resistant human ovarian cancer cell lines. We identified ${\alpha}$-N-acetylgalactosaminidase (NAGA) as one of the key candidate genes for cisplatin drug response. Interestingly, in cisplatin-resistant cell lines, NAGA was significantly down-regulated and hypermethylated at a promoter CpG site at position +251 relative to the transcriptional start site. Low NAGA expression in cisplatin-resistant cell lines was restored by treatment with a DNA demethylation agent, indicating transcriptional silencing by hyper-DNA methylation. Furthermore, overexpression of NAGA in cisplatin-resistant lines induced cytotoxicity in response to cisplatin, whereas depletion of NAGA expression increased cisplatin chemoresistance, suggesting an essential role of NAGA in sensitizing ovarian cells to cisplatin. These findings indicate that NAGA acts as a cisplatin sensitizer and its gene silencing by hypermethylation confers resistance to cisplatin in ovarian cancer. Therefore, we suggest NAGA may be a promising potential therapeutic target for improvement of sensitivity to cisplatin in ovarian cancer.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.21
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• pp.9085-9091
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• 2014

Background: Epidemiology studies have shown an inconclusive relationship between phytoestrogen intake and ovarian cancer risk and there have been no relevant meta-analyses directly regarding this topic. The purpose of the present meta-analysis was therefore to investigate any association between phytoestrogen intake and ovarian cancer in detail. Materials and Methods: We conducted a search of PubMed, EMBASE, EBSCO, the Cochrane Library, CNKI and Chinese Biomedical Database (up to April 2014) using common keywords for studies that focused on phytoestrogen and ovarian cancer risk. Study-specific risk estimates (RRs) were pooled using fixed effect or random-effect models. Results: Ten epidemiologic studies were finally included in the meta-analysis. The total results indicated higher phytoestrogen intake was associated with a reduced ovarian cancer risk (RR, 0.70; 95%CI: 0.56-0.87). The association was similar in sensitivity analysis. Meta regression analysis demonstrated sources and possibly types and regions as heterogeneous factors. Subgroup analysis of types, sources and regions showed that isoflavones (RR: 0.63; 95%CI: 0.46, 0.86), soy foods (RR: 0.51; 95%CI: 0.39, 0.68) and an Asian diet (RR: 0.48; 95%CI: 0.37, 0.63) intake could reduce the incidence of ovarian cancer. Conclusions: Our findings show possible protection by phytoestrogens against ovarian cancer. We emphasize specific phytoestrogens from soy foods, but not all could reduce the risk. The habit of plentiful phytoestrogen intake by Asians is worthy to recommendation. However, we still need additional larger well designed observational studies to fully characterize underlying associations.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.21
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• pp.9405-9410
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• 2014

Purpose: To evaluate the prognostic impact of peritoneal washing cytology in patients with endometrial and ovarian cancers. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively identified 86 individuals with ovarian carcinomas, ovarian borderline tumors and endometrial adenocarcinomas. The patients had been treated at Shahid Sadoughi Hospital and Ramazanzadeh Radiotherapy Center, Yazd, Iran between 2004 and 2012. Survival differences were determined by Kaplan-Meier analysis. Multivariate analysis was performed using the Cox regression method. A p<0.05 value was considered statistically significant. Results: There were 36 patients with ovarian carcinomas, 4 with borderline ovarian tumors and 46 with endometrial carcinomas. The mean age of the patients was $53.8{\pm}15.2years$. In patients with ovarian carcinoma the overall survival in the negative cytology group was better than the patients with positive cytology although this difference failed to reach statistical significance (p=0.30). At 0 to 50 months the overall survival was better in patients with endometrial adenocarcinoma and negative cytology than the patients with positive cytology but then it decreased (p=0.85). At 15 to 60 months patients with FIGO 2009 stage IA-II endometrial andocarcinoma and negative peritoneal cytology had a superior survival rate compared to 1988 IIIA and positive cytology only, although this difference failed to reach statistical significance(p=0.94). Multivariate analysis using Cox proportional hazards model showed that stage and peritoneal cytology were predictors of death. Conclusions: Our results show good correlation of peritoneal cytology with prognosis in patients with ovarian carcinoma. In endometrial carcinoma it had prognostic importance. Additional research is warranted.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.179-183
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• 1999

This study was performed to determine the significance of a baseline ovarian cyst on the response to controlled ovarian hyperstimulation and the outcome of IVF-ET. One hundred one patients who underwent IVF-ET were enrolled in this study. The outcome of 31 patients, who had an ovarian cyst of >10mm detected at ultrasound examination performed on day 3, was compared with that of 70 patients who underwent a similar protocol and did not have an ovarian cyst. E2 level on the day of hCG administration, the number of follicles, the number of oocytes retrieved, the number of embryo transferred and the pregnancy rate were evaulated. The E2 level on the day of hCG adminstration and the number of mature oocytes retrieved were lower in the group with a baseline cyst. The pregnancy rate also was significantly lower in the group with a cyst (21% versus 38%). Therefore a baseline ovarian cyst on cycle day 3 was associated with a poorer outcome after IVF-ET.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.8
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• pp.3937-3942
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• 2012

Background: Many studies have investigated possible association between the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T polymorphism and ovarian cancer risk, but the impact is still unclear owing to the obvious inconsistencies. This study was performed to quantify the strength of the association with a metaanalysis. Methods: We searched the PubMed, Embase, and CNKI databases for studies relating the association between MTHFR C677T polymorphism and ovarian cancer risk and estimated summary odds ratios (ORs) with confidence intervals (CIs) for assessment. Results: Finally, eight studies with a total of 3,379 ovarian cancer cases and 4,078 controls were included into this meta-analysis. Overall the showed that MTHFR C677T polymorphism was not associated with ovarian cancer risk under all genetic models ($OR_{T\;versus\;C}$ = 1.03, 95%CI 0.90-1.18; $OR_{TT\;versus\;CC}$ = 1.08, 95%CI 0.79-1.47; $OR_{TT\;versus\;TC+CC}$ = 1.05, 95%CI 0.80-1.37; $OR_{TT+TC\;versus\;CC}$ = 1.05, 95%CI 0.86-1.21). Meta-analyses of studies with confirmation of HWE also showed no significant association. Subgroup analyses by ethnicity showed there was no significant association in the Caucasians but MTHFR C677T polymorphic variant T contributed to increased risk of ovarian cancer in East Asians. No evidence of publication bias was observed. Conclusion: Meta-analyses of available data show that MTHFR C677T polymorphism is not associated with ovarian cancer risk in Caucasians, but the MTHFR polymorphic variant T may contribute to increased risk in East Asians.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.1627-1632
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• 2014

Background: Several studies indicated that the diagnosis season affects the prognosis of some cancers, such as examples in the prostate, colon and breast. This retrospective study aimed to investigate whether the diagnosis and recurrent season impacts the prognosis of epithelial ovarian cancer patients. Methods: From January 2005 to August 2010, 161 epithelial ovarian cancer patients were analyzed and followed up until August 2013. Kaplan-Meier survival curves and the log-rank test were used to make the survival analysis. Multivariate analysis was conducted to identify independent prognostic factors. Results: The prognostic factors of overall survival in epithelial ovarian cancer patients included age, clinical stage, pathological type, histological grade, residual disease after primary surgery, recurrent season and adjuvant chemotherapy cycles. Moreover, clinical stage, histological grade, residual disease after primary surgery, recurrent season and adjuvant chemotherapy cycles also impacted the progression-free survival of epithelial ovarian cancer patients. The diagnosis season did not have a significantly relationship with the survival of operable epithelial ovarian cancer patients. Median overall survival of patients with recurrent month from April to November was 47 months, which was longer (P < 0.001) than that of patients with recurrence month from December to March (19 months). Median progression-free survival of patients with recurrence month from April to November and December to March was 20 and 8 months, respectively (P < 0.001). Conclusion: The recurrence season impacts the survival of epithelial ovarian cancer patients. However, the diagnosed season does not appear to exert a significant influence.