Hexachlorobenzene exposure enhances COX-2 expression and metalloprotease activities in human endometrial stromal cells

CHIAPPINI, FLORENCIA; BASTÓN, JUAN IGNACIO; VACCAREZZA, AGUSTINA; SINGLA, JOSÉ JAVIER; PONTILLO, C. A.; MIRET, N.; FARINA, M.; MERESMAN, GABRIELA; RANDI, ANDREA

Edinburgo

Congreso; 50th Congress of the European Societies of Toxicology; 2014

The EUROTOX 2014 Congress Committee

Endometriosis is a gynecologic disorder characterized by the presence and growth of endometrial tissue in ectopic sites, causing infertility in reproductive-aged women. Evidence has emerged regarding the relation between organochlorine pollutants and endometriosis. Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) is a widely distributed pesticide that induces toxic reproductive effects and is an endocrine disruptor. Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is involved in pathogenesis of endometriosis. Its inhibition suppresses activity of metalloproteases (MMPs), decreasing invasion of human endometriotic epithelial and stromal cells. Altered patterns of MMPs have been reported in endometrial tissues from patients with endometriosis, suggesting that MMPs play critical roles in endometriosis development. In the present study, we examined the HCB action on MMP2 and MMP9 expression and activities, and COX-2 protein levels in HUF cells, T-HESC cells, and human endometrial stromal primary cultures. Cells were exposure to HCB (0.005, 0.05, 0.5 and 5 µM) during 3 and 24 hs, and protein levels were analyzed by Western Blotting, and MMPs activities by gel zymography. In HUF and T-HESC cells, HCB 0.5 µM increases: a)MMP9 activity (80%,p