The insulin-like growth factor system in @entity1 peritoneal fluid: its effects on endometrial stromal cells and its potential relevance to XXXX .

@entity1 @entity249 @entity12561 @entity2301 @entity442 @entity10116 @entity10513 @entity5100 @entity46 @entity158 @entity563
Peritoneal fluid (PF) lines the abdomen and pelvis and is believed to contain growth factors that stimulate @entity46 , a benign gynecological condition associated with pelvic @entity158 and @entity249 , in which endometrial cells proliferate and differentiate on the pelvic peritoneum, outside of their normal location within the uterus. In this study, we examined the insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system in seven paired samples of PF and serum from normally cycling @entity1 and examined the mitogenic potential of this fluid on cultured endometrial stromal cells. @entity442 , @entity5100 , and @entity10116 ( @entity10116 ), -2, -3, and -4 were identified in PF by immunoassays. PF IGF levels, determined by RIA, were approximately 60% of paired serum levels, and PF levels of @entity10513 and @entity2301 , determined by Western ligand blotting and RIA, respectively, were approximately half of their serum concentrations. @entity12561 was barely detectable by Western ligand blotting in PF, and levels of @entity10116 , determined by immunoassay, were not appreciably different in PF and serum. Incubation of [125I] @entity5100 with serum and PF and subsequent size-exclusion chromatography at neutral pH revealed approximately equal incorporation of radiolabel in the IGFBP regions of 150 and 44 kilodaltons (kDa) in serum and primarily in the 44-kDa region in PF. RIA of @entity2301 in the IGFBP regions of column effluent revealed that the majority of @entity2301 was in the 150-kDa region in both serum and PF, suggesting the presence of the ternary complex in PF. Western ligand blotting of column effluent samples revealed 37-/43-kDa @entity2301 primarily in the 150-kDa complex in serum and a marked reduction in the amount of the 37-/43-kDa IGFBP in PF. Western immunoblotting of column effluent with @entity2301 antiserum revealed immunoreactive @entity2301 forms of 37-43 kDa (major) and 28 kDa (minor) in serum and almost exclusively the 28-kDa band in PF, suggesting that @entity2301 in PF may be proteolytically processed. The presence of an @entity2301 protease was confirmed using [125I] @entity2301 as substrate and was not appreciably present in paired serum samples. Inhibitor profiles demonstrated that this protease is a metal-independent @entity563 protease, and its approximate relative molecular mass was estimated to be 69 kDa, determined by size-exclusion chromatography. The mitogenic potential of IGF peptides and PF was assessed on cultured endometrial stromal cells to test the hypothesis that IGFs in PF may stimulate the growth of endometrium in the pelvic cavity, for example in the disorder of @entity46 .(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
