Estrogen and progesterone play pivotal roles in endothelial progenitor cell proliferation.

ABSTRACT:

Background

It has been previously suggested that angiogenesis occurs during the menstrual cycle. Moreover, a rise in uterine blood flow is largely maintained by vasodilatation and substantial increases in angiogenesis. It is known that estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P4) are involved in angiogenesis. Recently, endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) were found to be involved in neovascularization; however, their roles in uterine neovascularization have not been well characterized. We hypothesized that E2- or P4-mediated EPC proliferation plays important roles in uterine neovascularization during the menstrual cycle.

Methods

The number of EPCs in peripheral blood from subjects in the menstrual phase (n=12), follicular phase (n=8), and luteal phase (n=16), was measured using flow

SUBMITTER: Matsubara Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3395836 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature