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. 2020 Mar;24(5):3242-3245.
doi: 10.1111/jcmm.14923. Epub 2020 Jan 28.

Dihydrotestosterone potentiates insulin to up-regulate prokineticin-1 in decidualizing human endometrial stromal cells

Dorina Ujvari  1 , Carlota Graells Brugalla  1 , Angelica Lindén Hirschberg  1   2
Affiliations

Dihydrotestosterone potentiates insulin to up-regulate prokineticin-1 in decidualizing human endometrial stromal cells

Dorina Ujvari et al. J Cell Mol Med. 2020 Mar.

Abstract

Prokineticin 1 (PROK1) is a key regulator of embryo implantation and placentation, and its dysregulation is associated with pregnancy complications, such as pre-eclampsia and foetal growth restriction. We have previously shown that insulin strongly enhances the expression of PROK1 in human decidualizing stromal cells. Here, we demonstrate that dihydrotestosterone (DHT), but not testosterone, potentiates insulin to up-regulate PROK1 in these cells. However, the androgens alone do not influence the expression of PROK1. Our findings suggest that insulin and androgens both are involved in the regulation of PROK1 that could have implications for normal and pathological pregnancies.

Keywords: PROK1; decidualization; dihydrotestosterone; endometrium; insulin; testosterone.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A, Relative level of PROK1 gene expression in nine healthy volunteers in response to 100 nmol/L insulin and/or 1 µmol/L DHT in in vitro decidualized human endometrial stromal cells after 6 d. Closed circles represent treatments without DHT, closed squares represent treatments with DHT. Main effect of insulin: P < .001; main effect of DHT: ns; interaction effect between insulin and DHT: P < .05. Sidak`s multiple comparison test: **P < .01; ***P < .001. B, PROK1 protein expression in nine healthy volunteers in response to 100 nmol/L insulin and/or 1 µmol/L DHT in in vitro decidualized human endometrial stromal cells after 6 days. Closed circles represent treatments without DHT, closed squares represent treatments with DHT. Main effect of insulin: P < .01; main effect of DHT: ns; interaction effect between insulin and DHT: P < .05. Sidak`s multiple comparison test: *P < .05; ***P < .001
Figure 2
Figure 2
A, Relative level of PROK1 gene expression in nine healthy volunteers in response to 100 nmol/L insulin and/or 1 µmol/L testosterone in in vitro decidualized human endometrial stromal cells after 6 d. Closed circles represent treatments without testosterone, closed squares represent treatments with testosterone. Main effect of insulin: P < .001; main effect of testosterone: ns; interaction effect between insulin and testosterone: ns. Sidak's multiple comparison test: ***P < .001. B, PROK1 protein expression in nine healthy volunteers in response to 100 nmol/L insulin and/or 1 µmol/L testosterone in in vitro decidualized human endometrial stromal cells after 6 days. Closed circles represent treatments without testosterone, closed squares represent treatments with testosterone. Main effect of insulin: P < .01; main effect of testosterone: ns; interaction effect between insulin and testosterone: ns. Sidak's multiple comparison test: ***P < .001
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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