Endometriosis Knowledgebase


A repository for genes associated with endometriosis

Results


PMID 23638035
Gene Name CRHR1
Condition Endometriosis
Association Associated
Population size 26
Population details 26 (16 women with endometriosis, 10 healthy women)
Sex Female
Associated genes CRH, UCN, CRHR1, CRHR2
Other associated phenotypes Endometriosis
Differential expression of CRH, UCN, CRHR1 and CRHR2 in eutopic and ectopic endometrium of women with endometriosis.

PLoS One. 2013 Apr 24;8(4):e62313. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0062313. Print 2013.

Vergetaki, Aikaterini| Jeschke, Udo| Vrekoussis, Thomas| Taliouri, Eirini| Sabatini, Luca| Papakonstanti, Evangelia A| Makrigiannakis, Antonis

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical School, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece.

Endometriosis is considered as a benign aseptic inflammatory disease, characterised by the presence of ectopic endometrium-like tissue. Its symptoms (mostly pain and infertility) are reported as constant stressors. Corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) and urocortin (UCN) are neuropeptides, strongly related to stress and inflammation. The effects of CRH and UCN are mediated through CRHR1 and CRHR2 receptors which are implicated in several reproductive functions acting as inflammatory components. However, the involvement of these molecules to endometriosis remains unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the expression of CRHR1 and CRHR2 in endometriotic sites and to compare the expression of CRHR1 and CRHR2 in eutopic endometrium of endometriotic women to that of healthy women. We further compared the expression of CRH, UCN, CRHR1 and CRHR2 in ectopic endometrium to that in eutopic endometrium of women with endometriosis. Endometrial biopsy specimens were taken from healthy women (10 patients) and endometrial and endometriotic biopsy specimens were taken from women with endometriosis (16 patients). Tauhe expression of CRH, UCN, CRHR1, and CRHR2 was tested via RT-PCR, immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. This study shows for the first time that CRH and UCN receptor subtypes CRHR1beta and CRHR2alpha are expressed in endometriotic sites and that they are more strongly expressed (p<0.01) in eutopic endometrium of women with endometriosis compared to healthy women endometrium at the mRNA and protein level. CRH, UCN, CRHR1 and CRHR2 mRNA were also more highly expressed in ectopic rather than eutopic endometrium (CRH, UCN, CRHR2alpha: p<0.01, CRHR1beta: p<0.05) and protein (CRH and UCN: p<0.05, CRHR1 and CRHR2: p<0.01) in women with endometriosis. These data indicate that CRH and UCN might play an immunoregulatory role in endometriotic sites by affecting reproductive functions such as decidualization and implantation of women with endometriosis.

Mesh Terms: Case-Control Studies| Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone/*genetics/metabolism| Endometriosis/*genetics/metabolism/pathology| Endometrium/metabolism| Female| *Gene Expression Regulation| Humans| Receptors, Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone/*genetics/meta