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15-Hydroxyprostaglandin Dehydrogenase and Cyclooxygenase 2 Messenger Ribonucleic Acid Expression and Immunohistochemical Localization in Human Cervical Tissue during Term and Preterm Labor

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology (S.A.T., B.B., M.S., G.E.), Karolinska Hospital and Karolinska Institute, SE-171 76 Stockholm, Sweden; Departments of Physiology and Obstetrics and Gynecology (F.A.P., D.G., S.J.L., J.R.G.C.), University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 1A1; and Department of Cell and Molecular Biology (A.M.), University of Lund, SE 22184 Lund, Sweden

Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Susanne Abelin Törnblom, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Karolinska Hospital/Karolinska Institute, SE-171 76 Stockholm, Sweden. E-mail: susanne.abelin{at}kbh.ki.se.

Here we have examined the enzymes cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 and 15-hydroxyprostaglandin dehydrogenase (15-OH PGDH) in pregnant human cervix. In biopsies taken transvaginally after preterm and term elective cesarean sections and vaginal deliveries, the levels of mRNA coding for COX-2 and 15-OH PGDH were assessed by Northern blotting. The cellular localization of the COX-2 and 15-OH PGDH proteins was determined by immunohistochemical analysis.

COX-2 and 15-OH PGDH mRNAs were expressed at detectable levels in the cervical biopsies from all four groups of subjects. At cesarean sections (unripe cervix), the level of 15-OH PGDH mRNA was significantly higher than the level in the ripe cervix at the time of partus, irrespective of the gestational length. In contrast, the level of COX-2 mRNA was similar in all subjects. Immunoreactivity of COX-2 and 15-OH PGDH was expressed by activated fibroblasts. The present investigation documents the expression and cellular localization of COX-2 and 15-OH PGDH in the preterm and term pregnant human cervix. This observation indicates that both preterm and term cervical ripening is associated with decreased degradation of prostaglandins.

This work was supported by grants from the Swedish Research Council (Grant GEO 349-2002-7189, AM 7479), the Karolinska Institute Funds, and the Swedish Society of Medicine.

Abbreviations: COX, Cyclooxygenase; ECM, extracellular matrix; MMP, metalloproteinase; 15-OH PGDH, 15-hydroxyprostaglandin dehydrogenase; PG, prostaglandin; PTL, premature labor.

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