BONE-MARROW-DERIVED CELL-POPULATIONS IN UTERINE AND ECTOPIC ENDOMETRIUM

Uterine endometrium contains numerous bone marrow-derived cells, The s pectrum of cell types is different from that of any other tissue, and the differences in endometrium from women with endometriosis may refle ct a different endometrial phenotype in these women, The cell types of bone marrow origin found in ectopic endometrium may indicate the degr ee of differentiation of the tissue, It was found that, in normal endo metrium, the CD45(+) cell population comprised T cells, macrophages, C D56(+) large granular lymphocytes, some CD16(+) cells and a few B cell s, Changes in these cell populations during the menstrual cycle were s imilar in endometrium from both controls and patients,vith endometrios is, and resembled that reported previously by others, In ectopic endom etrium, the frequency of CD45(+) cells remained within the same range as that of uterine endometrium but without any obvious pattern of chan ge during the menstrual cycle, CD56(+) large granular lymphocytes, an immune cell type characteristic of uterine endometrium, were also foun d in ectopic endometrium, Our results indicate that ectopic endometriu m, as well as comprising both glandular and stromal cells, contains bo ne marrow-derived cell populations similar to those of uterine endomet rium. This suggests that the same processes of cell migration and/or d ifferentiation occur in ectopic and uterine endometrium.