Progesterone stimulates the induction of human endometrial CD56+ lymphocytes in an in vitro culture system.
An unusual population of large granular lymphocytes (LGL) with the surface phenotype CD56(bright+)/CD16-/CD3- increases in the human endometrium during the late secretory phase and early pregnancy. To identify the factor(s) that induces CD56+ LGL in the human endometrium, we isolated endometrial leukocytes from nonpregnant human endometrium and investigated changes in CD56+ cells during culture with various factors. Isolated endometrial leukocyte-rich fraction and peripheral blood mononuclear cells were cultured for 6 days in the presence of progesterone, estradiol, PRL, or hCG, then nonadherent cells were collected and examined immunocytochemically. Endometrial leukocyte-rich fractions were composed of leukocytes and endometrial stromal cells, and 53.2 +/- 5.8% of them expressed CD45 antigen before culture. Therefore, leukocytes and endometrial stromal cells were cocultured in these endometrial leukocyte-rich fraction cultures. The percentage of CD56+ cells in endometrial leukocyte-rich fractions cultured with progesterone was significantly higher than that in fractions without progesterone. On the other hand, estradiol, PRL, and hCG did not significantly induce CD56+ cells in endometrial leukocyte-rich fractions. There was no significant difference in the percentage of CD56+ cells between peripheral blood mononuclear cell cultures with and without progesterone. These findings suggest that progesterone is an important factor for the in situ proliferation or differentiation of CD56+ LGL in human endometrium.
Inoue
T
T
Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Faculty of Medicine, Kyoto University, Japan.
Kanzaki
H
H
Imai
K
K
Narukawa
S
S
Katsuragawa
H
H
Watanabe
H
H
Hirano
T
T
Mori
T
T
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000032:analysis; D019002:CD56 Antigen / Q000032:analysis; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin / Q000494:pharmacology; D018920:Coculture Techniques; D046508:Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods; D004717:Endometrium / Q000276:immunology*; D004958:Estradiol / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007044:Hysterectomy; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D017493:Leukocyte Common Antigens / Q000032:analysis; D008875:Middle Aged; D017697:Premenopause; D011374:Progesterone / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011388:Prolactin / Q000494:pharmacology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology*
D015703:Antigens, CD; D019002:CD56 Antigen; D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin; D011374:Progesterone; D004958:Estradiol; D011388:Prolactin; D017493:Leukocyte Common Antigens