Reproductive BioMedicine Online
Volume 20, Issue 3 , Pages 305-313, March 2010

Assessment of presence and characteristics of multipotent stromal cells in human endometrium and decidua

  • Stanimir Kyurkchiev

      Affiliations

    • Institute of Biology and Immunology of Reproduction Acad K Bratanov, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 73 Tzarigradsko shosse, 1113 Sofia, Bulgaria
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author.
  • ,
  • Atanas Shterev

      Affiliations

    • IVF Unit, Ob/Gyn Hospital Dr Shterev, 25–31 Hristo Blagoev str, 1330 Sofia, Bulgaria
  • ,
  • Rumen Dimitrov

      Affiliations

    • Institute of Biology and Immunology of Reproduction Acad K Bratanov, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 73 Tzarigradsko shosse, 1113 Sofia, Bulgaria

Received 30 July 2009; received in revised form 7 September 2009; accepted 27 November 2009. published online 01 February 2010.

Declaration: The authors report no financial or commercial conflicts of interest.

Abstract 

This review discusses the presence and characteristics of multipotent stromal cells in human endometrium and decidua. A number of research groups have reported the isolation and characterization of multipotent stromal cells from the basal layer of the endometrium, and in a single case just from the menstrual blood, i.e. the superficial functional layer. Similarly, multipotent pre-decidual stromal cells are isolated from early decidua and characterized accordingly. Multipotent endometrial stromal cells and multipotent decidual stromal cells are shown to express the basic features of adult stem cells, which are clonogenicity, self-renewal, a potential to differentiate into adipogenic, osteogenic, chrondrogenic, endothelial-like cells and a specific set of surface molecules (CD73, CD90 and CD105). So far, it is not clear whether the same population of multipotent stromal cells is isolated from the basal endometrium or early decidua because it has been shown that in some cases the differentiation potential of endometrial stromal cells is more restricted in comparison to the decidual stromal cells. It is reasonable to assume that it is one cell population under different control by hormonal, paracrine and autocrine factors. Thus far, the functions of these cells have not been convincingly revealed.

Keywords: decidua, differentiation potential, human endometrium, immunomodulatory proteins, multipotent stromal cells

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 Stanimir Kyurkchiev, MD, DSc has been working on problems of reproductive immunology such as tissue-specific antigens of human placenta, identification of gamete-specific antigens and immune mechanisms in recurrent spontaneous abortions. Since 2005, his research has been focused on the presence and characteristics of stem cells in the human reproductive tract and he has published several papers on this topic in peer-reviewed journals. Currently he is a scientific consultant in the Dr Shterev Reproductive Health Centre in Bulgaria.

PII: S1472-6483(09)00288-0

doi:10.1016/j.rbmo.2009.12.011

Reproductive BioMedicine Online
Volume 20, Issue 3 , Pages 305-313, March 2010