Evaluation of IL-3, IL-5, and IL-6 concentration in the follicular fluid of women with endometriosis: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background: Endometriosis is associated with abnormal immunologic responses and combined inflammatory and anti-inflammatory conditions.
 Objective: This study aims to investigate follicular fluid (FF) concentration of interleukin (IL)-3, IL-5, and IL-6 in women with and without endometriosis.
 Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study 68 women who were referred to the in vitro fertilization center of Imam Reza hospital in Mashhad during 2018 were selected randomly. Leaves of cytokines in the FF samples were evaluated in the endometriosis and the control group (n = 34/each). The diagnostic accuracy of cytokines and clinical characteristics were evaluated.
 Results: IL-3 and IL-6 were significantly changed in the FF of the women with endometriosis compared with the control group (p = 0.04, and p < 0.01, respectively), and the mean concentration of IL-5 in the endometriosis group was lower than in the control group (p = 0.5), but this was not significant. There were significant differences in the menstrual cycle, dyspareunia, and dysmenorrhea between the groups (p < 0.01, p = 0.04, and p = 0.02, respectively). The diagnostic accuracy of IL-3 and IL-6 in the FF was low, with the area under the curve of 0.614 and 0.645, respectively.
 Conclusion: Although none of the cytokines had a predictive value for endometriosis, the decreased levels of IL-3 and increased levels of IL-6 in the FF samples of women with endometriosis, and risk factors, including irregular menstrual cycle, dyspareunia, and dysmenorrhea, could be associated with the pathogenesis of this painful disease.
 Key words: Interleukin-3, Interleukin-5, Interleukin-6, Follicular fluid, Endometriosis.

Identification of urine biomarkers of endometriosis—Protein mass spectrometry

“…He is considered to be one of the essential mediators of inflammatory conditions. Increased IL6ST concentrations are found in the eutopic endometrium in endometriosis 55 . The protein IL‐6 is a crucial paracrine regulator in many reproductive functions and is expressed in granulosa cells via the follicular fluid of the oocyte.…”

“…Increased IL6ST concentrations are found in the eutopic endometrium in endometriosis. 55 The protein IL-6 is a crucial paracrine regulator in many reproductive functions and is expressed in granulosa cells via the follicular fluid of the oocyte. It is believed that IL-6 participates in a series of reactions that stimulate progesterone production in granulosa cells 56 and may play an essential role in the regulation of oocyte maturation.…”

Diagnostic accuracy of interleukin-6 in multiple diseases: An umbrella review of meta-analyses

“…Wang et al observed a significant elevation in IL-6 levels among patients with endometriosis, and the ROC curve combined with miR-17 optimized the diagnostic power (AUC: 0.81) [ 108 ]. A recent cross-sectional study unveiled a significant elevation of IL-6 levels in the follicular fluid of endometriosis patients [ 109 ]. Furthermore, it was found that the level of IL-6 in stage III/IV patients was higher than that in stage I/II patients, and it was strongly correlated with the severity of the endometriosis [ 110 ].…”

Oxidative stress and inflammatory markers in ovarian follicular fluid of women with diminished ovarian reserve during in vitro fertilization

“…There have been a serious of studies indicating altered concentrations of certain in ammatory factors and growth factors in the FF are associated with PCOS[8, 12,17], obesity [18], and endometriosis [19][20][21], yet few studies have explored the changes in the FF composition in women with diminished ovarian reserve.…”