Analysis of the clonality of ectopic glands in peritoneal endometriosis using laser microdissection.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the clonality of ectopic gland cells in peritoneal endometriosis.


METHODS
Prospective study. University hospital.


METHODS
Seventeen women with surgically diagnosed endometriosis.


METHODS
Samples of peritoneal endometriotic lesions were obtained from patients during laparoscopic surgery.


METHODS
Clonality analysis used the laser microdissection technique, a phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK) gene polymorphism assay, and an androgen receptor (AR) gene polymorphism assay after digestion of the DNA with methylation-sensitive endonuclease.


RESULTS
Each ectopic gland of the peritoneal endometriotic lesion showed a monoclonal pattern in both the PGK gene and AR gene assays, but the methylation pattern of the PGK gene and/or AR gene was divergent among adjacent glands in the lesion. These data indicate that the peritoneal endometriotic lesions are multicellular in origin, although individual glands of the lesion are derived from single precursor cells.


CONCLUSIONS
The colored peritoneal endometriotic lesion in the present study was multicellular in origin. Peritoneal endometriotic lesions may thus be initiated by transplantation of a cluster of eutopic endometrial tissues into the pelvis.
Nabeshima
Hiroshi
H
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Miyagi, Japan. nabeakt@umin.ac.jp
Murakami
Takashi
T
Yoshinaga
Kosuke
K
Sato
Kazuyo
K
Terada
Yukihiro
Y
Okamura
Kunihiro
K
D002999:Clone Cells / Q000473:pathology*; D019175:DNA Methylation; D004715:Endometriosis / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006579:Heterozygote; D006720:Homozygote; D006801:Humans; D015907:Hysteroscopy; D053685:Laser Therapy; D042282:Microdissection; D010532:Peritoneal Diseases / Q000473:pathology*; D010735:Phosphoglycerate Kinase / Q000235:genetics; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D011446:Prospective Studies
D010735:Phosphoglycerate Kinase