Open AccessHuman endometriosis is associated with plasma cells and overexpression of B lymphocyte stimulator
Author(s) -
Anikó Hevér,
Richard B. Roth,
Peter Hevezi,
M. Esther Valverde Marin,
Jose A. Acosta,
Héctor Acosta,
José M. Rojas,
Rosa María Blanca Herrera,
Dimitri E. Grigoriadis,
E.C. White,
Paul Conlon,
Richard A. Maki,
Albert Zlotnik
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.0703451104
Subject(s) - endometriosis , b cell activating factor , infertility , pathogenesis , immunology , pelvic pain , tumor necrosis factor alpha , autoimmunity , medicine , lymphocyte , autoantibody , immune system , cancer research , biology , antibody , b cell , genetics , pregnancy , radiology
Endometriosis affects 10-20% of women of reproductive age and is associated with pelvic pain and infertility, and its pathogenesis is not well understood. We used genomewide transcriptional profiling to characterize endometriosis and found that it exhibits a gene expression signature consistent with an underlying autoimmune mechanism. Endometriosis lesions are characterized by the presence of abundant plasma cells, many of which produce IgM, and macrophages that produce BLyS/BAFF/TNFSF13B, a member of the TNF superfamily implicated in other autoimmune diseases. B lymphocyte stimulator (BLyS) protein was found elevated in the serum of endometriosis patients. These observations suggest a model for the pathology of endometriosis where BLyS-responsive plasma cells interact with retrograde menstrual tissues to give rise to endometriosis lesions.
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