title: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha expression changes in human pregnant myometrium.
abstract: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARα) has been demonstrated to exhibit anti-inflammatory activities that are hypothesized to play a key role in labor suppression and maintenance of uterine quiescence. The aim of this study was to identify pregnancy- and labor-associated changes in PPARα in human myometrium. For this investigation, human myometrium was obtained from premenopausal women, and the study participants were categorized into the following 4 groups: nonpregnant (NP; n = 10), preterm not in labor (PNL; n = 10, gestation range 20-35 weeks), term not in labor (TNL; n = 20, gestation range 37-41 weeks), and term in labor (TL; n = 20, gestation range 37-41 weeks). Immunohistochemistry was used to locate and confirm the expression of PPARα. Relative quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Western blotting were employed to study the expression of anti-inflammatory PPARα and proinflammatory interleukin 1β (IL-1β). Immunohistochemistry indicated that PPARα was located in the nucleus of uterine smooth muscle cells. Compared to other groups, in PNL group, the PPARα messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein increased significantly. Decreased PPARα mRNA and protein expressions in myometrium were associated with labor while IL-1β increased remarkably. There were negative correlations between PPARα and IL-1β on mRNA (r = -.765, P < .01) and protein (r = -.624, P < .01) levels analyzed using Pearson test. In conclusion, human pregnancy is associated with changes in expression of PPARα and IL-1β in myometrium. The changes observed suggest that PPARα may play a role in maintaining pregnancy or initiating labor through inhibiting the expression of IL-1β in human myometrium.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Qilu Hospital, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, China.
authors.forename: Kun
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.forename: Ming-Xiang
authors.initials: MX
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Xue-Lian
authors.initials: XL
authors.lastname: Su
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Xiang-Li
authors.initials: XL
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015153:Blotting, Western; D005260:Female; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D053583:Interleukin-1beta / Q000032:analysis; D007745:Labor Onset; D009215:Myometrium / Q000737:chemistry*; D047493:PPAR alpha / Q000032:analysis* / Q000235:genetics; D011247:Pregnancy; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D053583:Interleukin-1beta; D047493:PPAR alpha; D012333:RNA, Messenger
keywords: interleukin 1β; labor onset; myometrium; peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor alpha; pregnancy