O-032 Primary human endothelial and stromal cells from the uterine endometrium co-cultured in vitro in a 3D-system as a model to study the physiopathology of endometriosis

Abstract Study question Is an uterine endothelial-stromal cell 3D-system able to respond to inflammatory/immune factors presented in patient’s endometriotic serum and can this be reversible by hormonal treatment? Summary answer The endothelial-stromal cells system is responsive to the serum from women with endometriosis and its cytokine profile may be reverse with hormonal treatment. What is known already Endometriosis’s declined fertility is mainly attributed to poor oocyte quality, inhibition of ovulation, an anatomical commitment of tubes and uterus, and loss of endometrial receptivity during the implantation window. Changes in the inflammatory/immune profile in pelvic and peripheral blood also suggest a possible interference of several cytokines playing a role in women's reduced fertility. Three-dimensional (3D) cell cultures open up new study possibilities, by guaranteeing interactions between spatially organized tissues mimicking the natural microenvironment and can significantly contribute to obtaining essential data for understanding endometrial physiology and its associated diseases. Study design, size, duration This is a prospective cohort study with oocyte donation women from a private IVF center and patients under endometriosis treatment in an University-affiliated gynecology service. Endometrium biopsy (n = 9) and non-endometriotic serum blood (n = 15) were collected from oocyte donors in the same day of oocyte picked (antagonist protocol), before ovary puncture and serum blood samples were collected from patients diagnostic with endometriosis (n = 15). Samples were collected between Jan/2016 and May/2017 after signing the informed consent form. Participants/materials, setting, methods Endometriotic serum samples were obtained from patients with (n = 10) or without (n = 5) estrogen/progestin therapy. Tissue biopsies were digested and submitted to magnetic microbeads. Endothelial and stromal cells layers were added one-by-one to a mixture of extracellular matrix components. The 3D-system received endometriotic or control serum for additional 48h. Supernatants were excluded and the cells homogenized for cytokine evaluation through cytometric bead array. The ANOVA-Tukey’s test were used for statistical analysis, p