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Molecular Characteristics of the Endometrium in Uterine Adenomyosis and Its Biochemical Microenvironment

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Abstract

Adenomyosis, which manifests with focally or diffusely scattered endometrial tissue within the uterine myometrium, is an endometriosis-like disease with controversial pathogenesis and compromised reproductive outcomes. This review, including the in vitro and in vivo studies performed on human or mouse models, is aimed to summarize the specific molecular characteristics of endometrium in the biochemical microenvironments of uterine adenomyosis. Many studies attributed the endometrium as the main cause of pathogenesis, with evidence of differential genetic expression and/or epigenetic modulation as well as estrogen-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition. However, some studies indicated that the myometrium could play a role in the development of disease, based on findings of smooth muscle metaplasia and/or fibroblast-to-myofibroblast transdifferentiation by the influence of local biochemical factors. To date, it remains unclear whether adenomyosis is a genetically determined or a microenvironmentally induced disorder or whether the dysregulation of local factors may elicit the alteration of genetic expression in the endometrium. Similarly, it is uncertain whether the endometrial characteristics would remain consistent or could change along with a woman’s reproductive life. Further longitudinal studies of the epigenetic controls or system biology are needed to elucidate the pathogenesis. Discovery of effective conservative treatments to improve the reproductive outcomes of patients with adenomyosis is still warranted.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Kwei-Shan, Tao-Yuan, Taiwan

    Chih-Feng Yen MD, PhD & Hsin-Shih Wang MD, PhD

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou and Graduate Institute of Clinical Medical Sciences, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Tao-Yuan, Taiwan

    Chih-Feng Yen MD, PhD, Chyi-Long Lee MD, PhD, Hsin-Shih Wang MD, PhD & Shuen-Kuei Liao PhD

  3. Graduate Institute of Clinical Medical Sciences, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Tao-Yuan, Taiwan

    Chih-Feng Yen MD, PhD & Hsin-Shih Wang MD, PhD

  4. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA

    S. Joseph Huang MD, PhD

  5. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, E-Da Hospital, I-Shou University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan

    S. Joseph Huang MD, PhD

  6. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Keelung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Keelung, Taiwan

    Chyi-Long Lee MD, PhD

  7. The PhD Program of Cancer Biology and Drug Discovery, Center of Excellence for Cancer Research, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, 11031, Taiwan

    Shuen-Kuei Liao PhD

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  1. Chih-Feng Yen MD, PhD
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Correspondence to Hsin-Shih Wang MD, PhD or Shuen-Kuei Liao PhD.

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Yen, CF., Huang, S.J., Lee, CL. et al. Molecular Characteristics of the Endometrium in Uterine Adenomyosis and Its Biochemical Microenvironment. Reprod. Sci. 24, 1346–1361 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1177/1933719117691141

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