title: Contractile activity of human decidual stromal cells. II. Effect of interleukin-10.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Human decidual stromal cells (DSC) are myofibroblast-like cells that express alpha-smooth muscle (alpha-SM) actin, a protein associated with cell contractility. Several lines of experimental evidence in humans and mice show that antiinflammatory cytokines favor normal pregnancy, whereas Th1 and inflammatory cytokines play a role in abortion. We previously demonstrated that IL-2, a Th1 cytokine, increased the contractility of human DSC.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We studied the effect of the antiinflammatory cytokines IL-10 and IL-4 on the contractility of DSC from first-trimester pregnancy.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied 10 healthy women who underwent elective vaginal termination of first-trimester pregnancy at Clínica El Sur, Málaga, and Clínica Ginegranada, Granada.
  
  
  METHODS
  After isolation of DSC, cell contractility was measured with the collagen gel contraction assay. alpha-SM actin was detected with Western blotting and immunofluorescence.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found that IL-10, but not IL-4, increased the volume of the collagen gel matrixes in which the cytokine-treated DSC were cultured, showing that IL-10 decreased DSC contractility. By Western blotting we demonstrated that this effect was not related to an alteration in the synthesis of alpha-SM actin. Nevertheless, we observed by immunofluorescence microscopy that DSC treated with IL-10 exhibited stress fibers with a lower content of alpha-SM actin than untreated control DSC.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  IL-10 relaxes DSC by reducing the incorporation of alpha-SM actin into their stress fibers. This relaxing activity may be of relevance for the maintenance of pregnancy.
authors.affiliation: Unidad de Inmunología, Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Granada, 18012 Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kimatrai
authors.forename: Osmany
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.forename: Raquel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Muñoz-Fernández
authors.forename: Irene
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Tirado
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: Ana Clara
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Abadía-Molina
authors.forename: Enrique G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Olivares
mesh_terms: D000199:Actins / Q000378:metabolism; D000328:Adult; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003656:Decidua / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015847:Interleukin-4 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017154:Stromal Cells / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D000199:Actins; D016753:Interleukin-10; D015847:Interleukin-4