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Original Studies |
Proteins in the Upper and Lower Segments of the Human Uterus during Pregnancy and Labor1
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom NE1 4LP; and the Maternal and Fetal Medicine Section, Institute of Medical Genetics (F.L.), Yorkhill, Glasgow, United Kingdom G3 8SJ
Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Dr. G. Nicholas Europe-Finner, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Royal Victoria Infirmary, 4th Floor Leazes Wing, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom NE1 4LP.
There is evidence from many studies indicating that a number of
specific quiescent and contractile associated proteins are temporally
regulated in the myometrium during pregnancy. In this present
investigation we provide data that strongly suggest that myometrial
connexin-43, cyclooxygenase-1 and -2 (COX-1 and -2), and
Gs
proteins are also spatially expressed within the
human uterus during pregnancy and labor. Using paired lower and upper
segment myometrial samples taken from individual women at term and
during spontaneous labor, we have measured the expression of these
proteins by immunoblotting with specific antibodies. We report that the
myometrial gap junction connexin-43 protein is expressed at much
greater levels in the upper uterine compared to the lower uterine
segment and that this difference is even more pronounced during the
course of labor. Conversely, myometrial COX-1 and -2 proteins appear to
be expressed at much greater levels in the lower compared to the upper
uterine segment. Moreover, the level of expression of both proteins is
unaffected by the onset of parturition. In contrast, myometrial
Gs protein appears to be uniformly expressed in both
lower and upper segments and is similarly down-regulated during
parturition, as previously reported. The differential expression of
COX-1 and -2 and connexin-43 in the uterus may allow cervical ripening
before and dilatation during labor and facilitate effective propagation
of contractions from fundus to cervix, which may be further facilitated
by the down-regulation of Gs at the onset of
parturition.
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