title: Eicosanoid production by intrauterine tissues before and after labor in short-term tissue culture.
abstract: Prostanoid production by intrauterine tissues from pregnant and non-pregnant women has been studied intensively over the last decade. Little is known about the lipoxygenase metabolites of arachidonic acid (AA). The production of prostaglandins and HETEs by pregnancy specific human tissues was investigated in a short-term culture system. Tissue samples were obtained after uncomplicated pregnancies from placenta, fetal membranes and decidua of deliveries before (n = 6) and after the onset of labor (n = 8) and incubated for 1 hour in oxygenated HBSS. In the supernatant, PGE2, PGF2 alpha, 6-keto-PGF1 alpha and TXB2 were measured with RIA and 15-, 12- and 5-HETE with HPLC and UV-detection. The main AA-metabolite in all tissue incubations was 12-HETE. Decidua produced 12 to 28 times more prostaglandins than placenta and fetal membranes with 6-keto-PGF1 alpha as the main metabolite. The main cyclooxygenase derivative measured from placenta and fetal membrane incubations was TXB2. After labor, fetal membranes showed an increase in total prostaglandin (significant for PGE2) and a decrease in HETE synthesis. The physiologic significance of 12-HETE in reproduction is still poorly understood, but a shift in AA metabolism from HETEs to prostaglandins may be involved in the initiation of labor. Furthermore, these results point to different roles of the tissue compartments within the pregnant uterus for the parturition process.
authors.affiliation: Universitatsfrauenklinik Endokrinologie und Reproduktionsmedizin, Freiburg, Germany.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wetzka
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Schafer
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Scheibel
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Nusing
authors.forename: H P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Zahradnik
mesh_terms: D019377:12-Hydroxy-5,8,10,14-eicosatetraenoic Acid; D015121:6-Ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha / Q000378:metabolism; D000001:Calcimycin / Q000494:pharmacology; D046508:Culture Techniques; D003656:Decidua / Q000378:metabolism; D015232:Dinoprostone / Q000378:metabolism; D015777:Eicosanoids / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D011464:Epoprostenol / Q000378:metabolism; D005321:Extraembryonic Membranes / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006893:Hydroxyeicosatetraenoic Acids / Q000378:metabolism; D007743:Labor, Obstetric / Q000502:physiology*; D010920:Placenta / Q000378:metabolism; D011247:Pregnancy; D013928:Thromboxane A2 / Q000378:metabolism; D013929:Thromboxane B2 / Q000378:metabolism; D014599:Uterus / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D015777:Eicosanoids; D006893:Hydroxyeicosatetraenoic Acids; D000001:Calcimycin; D013929:Thromboxane B2; D013928:Thromboxane A2; D015121:6-Ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha; D019377:12-Hydroxy-5,8,10,14-eicosatetraenoic Acid; D011464:Epoprostenol; D015232:Dinoprostone