Project name: Homo sapiens

Description: The developmental origins of adult disease are now recognized to reflect intrauterine conditions during embryonic and fetal life. Cell-cell communication between the maternal endometrium and the pre-implantation embryo can occur by several means. Here, we show that maternal miRNAs are secreted by the endometrial epithelium to the endometrial fluid. Microarray assessments revealed the presence of specific miRNAs that are associated with the window of implantation and therefore in direct contact with the human preimplantation embryo. These miRNAS are transported as free or exosome-associated molecules secreted to the endometrial fluid and then uptake into the pre-implantation embryo through the trophoectoderm. Finally, these maternal miRNAsS were able to induce transcriptional and functional modifications of the embryo. Therefore, we propose an innovative model whereby endometrial maternal miRNAS may function as transcriptomic regulators during early embryo development offering a new perspective on the developmental origins of adult diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and others that are now recognized to reflect intrauterine conditions.Overall design: This is a prospective study in which endometrial fluid was obtained from healthy patients that had no underlying endometrial pathology and had regular menstrual cycles of between 25 and 33 days. None of these women had received a hormonal preparation in the 3 months preceding biopsy (fluid) collection. Endometrial (fluid) samples were distributed in five groups according to the phase in the cycle: group 1, Early Proliferative (EP) (days 1–8); group 2, Late Proliferate (LP) (days 9–14); group 3, Early Secretory (ES) (days 15–18); group 4, Window of Implantation (WOI) (days 19–22); and group 5, Late Secretory (LS) (days 23–28) according to the criteria of Noyes {Noyes:1975vl}. A total of 20 patients were included, four per group

Data type: Transcriptome or Gene expression

Sample scope: Multiisolate

Relevance: Medical

Last updated: 2013-02-21