Glucocorticoid treatment decreases sera embryotoxicity in endometriosis patients.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the effect of short-term glucocorticoid administration on embryotoxicity of sera from infertile patients with mild to moderate endometriosis.


METHODS
Prospective longitudinal study.


METHODS
Eight infertile patients with mild to moderate endometriosis and a control group of eight infertile patients with tubal infertility were selected on the basis of laparoscopic examination.


METHODS
Basal (B) serum collection and day 1 (T1), day 3 (T2), day 6 (T3), and day 12 (T4) serum drawn after a 3-day glucocorticoid treatment in endometriosis patients.


METHODS
Embryotoxicity of endometriosis sera, before and after glucocorticoid treatment, was investigated using a bioassay performed on two-cell mouse embryos. Interleukin 1 alpha (IL-1 alpha) and antismooth muscle, antimitochondrial, and antinuclear autoantibodies were also tested in these sera.


RESULTS
At 50% concentration, endometriosis serum is embryotoxic in comparison with control; 0% versus 61% of the embryos reached the blastocyst stage at 72 hours, respectively (basal versus control, P less than 0.001). However, this embryotoxicity significantly decreases 12 days after glucocorticoid treatment in comparison with untreated sera; 32.4% versus 0% of the embryos reached blastocyst stage at 72 hours, respectively (T4 versus basal, P less than 0.001), although they did not reach nontoxic levels (greater than 50%). Interleukin 1 alpha was undetectable in all samples analyzed. In endometriosis sera, antismooth muscle antibody was detected.


CONCLUSIONS
At 50% concentration, serum from infertile patients with minimal to moderate endometriosis appears to be embryotoxic to the in vitro development of two-cell mouse embryos. However, this embryotoxicity significantly decreases 12 days after a 3-day treatment with glucocorticoids.
Simón
C
C
Instituto Valenciano de Infertilidad, Valencia, Spain.
Gómez
E
E
Mir
A
A
De los Santos
M J
MJ
Pellicer
A
A
D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D001755:Blastocyst / Q000502:physiology; D001769:Blood; D046508:Culture Techniques; D004715:Endometriosis / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications; D005260:Female; D005313:Fetal Death; D006801:Humans; D007247:Infertility, Female / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008776:Methylprednisolone Hemisuccinate / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051379:Mice; D009028:Morula / Q000502:physiology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011446:Prospective Studies
D008776:Methylprednisolone Hemisuccinate