mRNA expression of VEGF and its receptors in fallopian tubes of women with ectopic pregnancies.
BACKGROUND
Establishment of viable pregnancy requires embryo implantation and placentation. Ectopic pregnancy (EP) is a pregnancy complication which occurs when an embryo implants outside of the uterine cavity, most often in a fallopian tube. On the other hand, an important aspect of successful implantation is angiogenesis. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a potent angiogenic factor responsible for vascular development that acts through its receptors, VEGF receptor 1 (VEGFR1) and VEGFR2. This study aims to investigate mRNA expression of VEGF and its receptors in fallopian tubes of women who have EP compared with fallopian tubes of pseudo-pregnant women. We hypothesize that expression of VEGF and its receptors in human fallopian tubes may change during EP.


METHODS
This was a case-control study. The case group consisted of women who underwent salpingectomy because of EP. The control group consisted of women with normal fallopian tubes that underwent hysterectomy. Prior to tubal sampling, each control subject received an injection of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) to produce a state of pseudo-pregnancy. Fallopian tubes from both groups were procured. We investigated VEGF, VEGFR1 and VEGFR2 mRNA expressions in different sections of these tubes (infundibulum, ampulla and isthmus) by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and quantitative PCR (Q-PCR).


RESULTS
RT-PCR showed expressions of these genes in all sections of the fallopian tubes in both groups. Q-PCR analysis revealed that expressions of VEGF, VEGFR1 and VEGFR2 were lower in all sections of the fallopian tubes from the case group compared to the controls. Only VEGFR2 had higher expression in the ampulla of the case group.


CONCLUSIONS
Decreased expressions of VEGF, VEGFR1 and VEGFR2 in the EP group may have a role in the pathogenesis of embryo implantation in fallopian tubes.
Department of Endocrinology and Female Infertility at Reproductive Biomedicine Research Center, Royan Institute for Reproductive Biomedicine, ACECR, Tehran, Iran ; Department of Biochemistry, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran.
Nafise
N
Zarezade
Department of Endocrinology and Female Infertility at Reproductive Biomedicine Research Center, Royan Institute for Reproductive Biomedicine, ACECR, Tehran, Iran ; Department of Biochemistry, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran.
Samane
S
Saboori Darabi
Department of Endocrinology and Female Infertility at Reproductive Biomedicine Research Center, Royan Institute for Reproductive Biomedicine, ACECR, Tehran, Iran.
Fariba
F
Ramezanali
Department of Endocrinology and Female Infertility at Reproductive Biomedicine Research Center, Royan Institute for Reproductive Biomedicine, ACECR, Tehran, Iran.
Elham
E
Amirchaghmaghi
Department of Epidemiology and Reproductive Health at Reproductive Epidemiology Research Center, Royan Institute for Reproductive Biomedicine, ACECR, Tehran, Iran.
Gholamreza
G
Khalili
Department of Endocrinology and Female Infertility at Reproductive Biomedicine Research Center, Royan Institute for Reproductive Biomedicine, ACECR, Tehran, Iran ; Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Arash Women's Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran ; Vali-e-Asr Reproductive Health Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Ashraf
A
Moini
Department of Endocrinology and Female Infertility at Reproductive Biomedicine Research Center, Royan Institute for Reproductive Biomedicine, ACECR, Tehran, Iran.
Reza
R
Aflatoonian
Ectopic Pregnancy; Fallopian Tube; Gene Expression; VEGF Receptor; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor