The Effect of low-dose Aspirin and Clomiphene Citrate on the Expression of Neural Cell Adhesion Molecules (NCAM) in the Human Endometrium / 대한산부인과학회잡지

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: The treatment with low-dose aspirin in the patients with unexplained infertility has been reported to improve the pregnancy rate and implantation rate via increasing the blood flow in the endometrium. But there are little known about the relationships between low-dose aspirin and cell adhesion molecules, NCAM. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of low-dose aspirin and clomiphene citrate treatment on the expression of NCAM in the endometrium. METHODS: The patients with unexplained infertility (N=37) were grouped into 3 groups clomiphene citrate and low-dose aspirin treated group (N=8), clomiphene citrate treated group (N=10), and natural cycle group (N=10, no treatment). As control group, the proliferative and menopausal endometrium was used. Each endometium was obtained by endometrial biopsy performed in late luteal phase and immunohistochemical staining with NCAM was performed. RESULTS: In the stromal cells, the staining intensity of NCAM expression and the number of vessels were significantly increased in the endomterium treated with clomiphene citrate and low-dose aspirin compared with other groups (p<0.05). And the expression of NCAM in the prolifertive and menopausal endometrium showed very weak staining. CONCLUSION: The expression of NCAM in the stromal cells and the number of vessels were increased in the endometrium of unexplained infertility patients treated with clomiphene citrate and low-dose aspirin. These findings may suggest low-dose aspirin has an important role during the secretory phase of endometrium to improve the implantation via increasing the expression of cell adhesion molecules, especially NCAM and increasing the number of vessels.