<p><b>OBJEVTIVE</b>To investigate the inhibitory effect of lentiviral vector-mediated
short hairpin RNA targeting
survivin (LV-
survivin shRNA) on the
growth of
human endometrium xenograft in the
abdominal cavity of
nude mice.</p><p><b>
METHODS</b>The
endometrium xenografts from 8
women with
endometriosis were injected into the peritoneal cavities of 45
nude mice. The
mice were then randomly assigned to receive
intraperitoneal injection of LV-
survivin shRNA, pGCL-NC-GFP (negative control) or PBS (blank control). Two weeks later, the number and morphometry of endometriotic lesions were quantified and the expression of
survivin protein were detected by
immunohistochemistry.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The formation of endometriotic lesions was significantly suppressed in
mice receiving LV-
survivin shRNA injection as compared with those in the two
control groups (P/0.001). The
mice in LV-
survivin-
shRNA group showed significantly down-regulated expression levels of
survivin protein compared with those in the negative and blank
control groups, presenting also
necrosis in the
endometriosis-like lesions in microscopic
observation.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Lentiviral vector-mediated
shRNA can effectively inhibit the expression of
survivin in
human endometrium xengrafts and suppress the formation and
growth of endometriotic lesions in the
abdominal cavities of
nude mice.</p>