Expression of steroid receptors and proteins related to apoptosis in endometria of women with polycystic ovary syndrome

Objective: To evaluate the expression of steroid hormone receptors, proteins related to apoptosis, and cell proliferation in endometria from women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Design: Case-control study. Setting: Hospital research unit. Patient(s): Eight women with PCOS and 12 fertile healthy women of similar age to those with PCOS. Intervention(s): Endometrial samples were obtained from women with PCOS (PCOSE) and normal (NE) women during the proliferative phase of the menstrual cycle. Main Outcome Measure(s): Expression studies (immunohistochemistry and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) and DNA fragmentation [TdT-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL)]. Result(s): In stroma, protein expression of estrogen receptor a, Bcl-2, and Bax was higher in PCOSE than in NE; epithelial cells had a greater expression of androgen receptor in the nucleus and a lower expression in the cytoplasm of PCOSE. Cell proliferation was higher in the epithelia of NE, while the expression of caspase-3 and DNA fragmentation was similar in both groups. The bax mRNA expression was higher in PCOSE, and bcl-2 mRNA expression was similar between groups. A higher bcl-2/bax relative ratio in PCOSE was observed. Conclusion(s): An alternating expression of proteins related to cell survival in endometria from PCOSE may potentially be associated with the disruption of their endometrial cell cycle. (C) 2003 by American Society for Reproductive Medicine.