G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1 expression in normal myometrium, leiomyoma, and adenomyosis tissues of premenopausal women

Abstract

To verify the different expression of G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1 (GPER1) among normal uterine, leiomyoma, and adenomyosis tissues. Normal uterine, leiomyoma, and adenomyosis tissue samples were obtained from women aged 35–52 years from a tertiary university hospital. The tissue samples were subjected to immunohistochemical, Western blot, and reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analyses of GPER1. GPER1 protein expression was confirmed in the tissues by immunohistochemical and Western blot analyses and compared with GPER1 mRNA levels using RT-PCR. GPER1 was detected in the tissue samples of leiomyoma and adenomyosis, which are estrogen-dependent diseases. GPER1 expression was similar between normal uterine and leiomyoma tissues but was reduced in adenomyosis tissue. The level of phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1/2 was lower and higher in leiomyoma and adenomyosis tissues, respectively, than in normal tissue, but the differences among the groups were not statistically significant. Our immunohistochemical, Western blot, and RT-PCR results suggest that GPER1 expression is involved in cell proliferation in leiomyoma and in cell invasion and migration in adenomyosis. Functional studies of GPER1 involving larger sample sizes should be performed to confirm the adenomyosis and leiomyoma disease mechanisms and eventually to develop new therapeutic interventions for these diseases.

摘要

探讨G蛋白偶联雌激素受体1（GPER1）在正常子宫、子宫平滑肌瘤和子宫腺肌病组织中表达的差异。正常子宫、子宫平滑肌瘤和子宫腺肌病的组织样本来自第三大学医院, 患者年龄在35-52岁之间。组织标本进行GPER1免疫组化、Western blot和逆转录聚合酶链反应（RT-PCR）分析。免疫组化和Western blot分析证实GPER1蛋白在组织中的表达, 并与RT-PCR检测的GPER1 mRNA水平进行比较。在雌激素依赖性疾病子宫肌瘤和子宫腺肌病的组织标本中检测到了GPER1。GPER1在正常子宫肌层和子宫平滑肌瘤的组织中表达相似, 但在子宫腺肌病组织中表达减少。子宫平滑肌瘤和子宫腺肌病组织中磷酸化细胞外信号调节激酶1/2的水平分别低于和高于正常组织, 但各组间差异无统计学意义。免疫组化、Western blot和RT-PCR结果显示GPER1的表达参与了子宫肌瘤的细胞增殖和子宫腺肌病的细胞内侵袭和迁移。对GPER1功能的研究涉及到更大的样本量, 应该用来确认子宫腺肌病和子宫平滑肌瘤的发病机制, 并最终研发出这些疾病新的治疗措施。

The Chinese abstracts are translated by Prof. Dr. Xiangyan Ruan and her team: Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100026, China.

Keywords:

• GPER1
• estrogens
• adenomyosis
• leiomyoma

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by the Soonchunhyang University Research Fund.