title: Effect of relaxin on TGF-beta1 expression in cultured vaginal fibroblasts from women with stress urinary incontinence.
abstract: The objective of this study is to compare relaxin's effect on transforming growth factor (TGF)- beta1 and latent TGF-beta1-binding protein (LTBP-1) in vaginal fibroblasts from women with stress urinary incontinence (SUI) to continent women (controls) in both phases of the menstrual cycle. Fibroblasts were treated with relaxin. TGF-beta1 levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. LTBP-1 expression was evaluated by Western blot. In the proliferative phase, total TGF-beta1 level in the supernatant, cells, and extracellular matrix (ECM) of SUI fibroblasts decreased with increasing relaxin concentration (P < .05). Active TGF-beta1 levels increased at a low concentration of relaxin (P < .05) in the supernatant but decreased in the ECM of SUI fibroblasts at high concentration (P < .05). In the secretory phase, total TGF-beta1 levels decreased with relaxin treatment (P < .05) in the supernatant, cells and ECM of both women with SUI and controls. Relaxin decreased the levels of total and active TGF-beta1 in the ECM isolated from SUI vaginal fibroblasts.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California 94305, USA. yanwen@stanford.edu
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Yang-Yu
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Mary Lake
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Polan
authors.forename: Bertha
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D015536:Down-Regulation; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005109:Extracellular Matrix / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D053779:Latent TGF-beta Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D008597:Menstrual Cycle / Q000378:metabolism; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012065:Relaxin / Q000378:metabolism*; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1 / Q000378:metabolism*; D014550:Urinary Incontinence, Stress / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D014621:Vagina / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: C509032:LTBP1 protein, human; D053779:Latent TGF-beta Binding Proteins; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1; D012065:Relaxin