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. 2014 Jun 16:12:51.
doi: 10.1186/1477-7827-12-51.

Blood soluble interleukin 1 receptor accessory protein levels are consistently low throughout the menstrual cycle of women with endometriosis

Nadège Michaud, Mahera Al-Akoum, Ali Akoum  1
Affiliations

Blood soluble interleukin 1 receptor accessory protein levels are consistently low throughout the menstrual cycle of women with endometriosis

Nadège Michaud et al. Reprod Biol Endocrinol. .

Abstract

Background: A deficiency in the counter-regulatory mechanisms of interleukin 1 (IL1) may play a significant role in endometriosis pathogenesis and associated chronic inflammation. The aim of this study was to investigate peripheral blood levels of soluble IL1 receptor accessory protein (sIL1RAP), a potent natural inhibitor of IL1, in women with and without endometriosis.

Methods: Peripheral blood samples were collected from women with endometriosis (n = 47) consulting for infertility, pelvic pain or tubal ligation, in whom the disease was diagnosed at laparoscopy. Control healthy women (n = 27) were requesting tubal ligation or reanastomosis and had no visible evidence of endometriosis at laparoscopy. sIL1RAP levels were determined by ELISA, whereas estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P4) levels were determined by competitive immunoassays.

Results: sIL1RAP levels were significantly decreased in women with early endometriosis stages compared to controls (p < 0.05) and markedly during the proliferative phase of the menstrual cycle (p < 0.001). Actually, while sIL1RAP were significantly increased in the proliferative compared to the secretory phase in normal women (p < 0.0001) and peaked at the end of this phase, sIL1RAP remained consistently low and showed non-significant variations throughout the menstrual cycle in women with endometriosis.

Conclusions: Lower circulating levels of sIL1RAP points to a significant impairment in the counter-regulatory mechanisms of IL1, which in view of the cytokine's potent inflammatory and growth-promoting properties may play a significant role in the pathophysiology of endometriosis.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
sIL1RAP concentrations in blood samples of patients without or with different endometriosis stages. A, normal controls (NC) and women with endometriosis (E); B, normal controls (NC) and women with endometriosis distributed according to the stage of the disease (EI/II and EIII/IV). The horizontal lines represent the mean for each set of data. *p < 0.05 as compared to NC.
Figure 2
Figure 2
sIL1RAP concentrations in blood samples of patients without or with endometriosis distributed according to the fertility status or pelvic pain. A, normal controls (NC) and women with endometriosis distributed according to the fertility status (EF, endometriosis fertile and EI, endometriosis infertile); B, normal controls (NC) and women with endometriosis distributed according to the absence or presence of pelvic pain (EWOP, endometriosis without pain and EWP, endometriosis with pain). The horizontal lines represent the mean for each set of data.
Figure 3
Figure 3
sIL1RAP concentrations in blood samples of patients without and with endometriosis distributed according to the menstrual cycle phase. A, sIL1RAP concentration in normal controls and women with endometriosis in the proliferative (NP and EP, respectively) and the secretory (NS and ES, respectively) phases of the cycle. B, Cyclic variations of sIL1RAP concentrations in women with and without endometriosis. EMP, early-mid proliferative; LP, late proliferative; EMS, early-mid secretory; LS, late secretory. The horizontal lines represent the mean for each set of data; ***p < 0.001 as compared to NP; ++p < 0.01 as compared to NC.
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