The inhibitory effect of celecoxib and rosiglitazone on experimental endometriosis

Objective To evaluate the effects of celecoxib and rosiglitazone on the implantation and growth of endometriotic-like lesions in a murine model of endometriosis. Design Prospective experimental study. Setting Animal research and laboratory facility. Animal(s) Two-month-old female BALB/c mice. Intervention(s) Surgically induced endometriosis in female BALB/C mice; 28 days of treatment with celecoxib, rosiglitazone, or their combination; counting, measuring, excising, and fixing lesions. Main Outcome Measure(s) Immunohistochemical examination for proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), CD31, and CD34 to assess cell proliferation and vascularization, with the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) technique for apoptosis evaluation. Result(s) Celecoxib and the combined treatment (celecoxib and rosiglitazone) statistically significantly reduced the mean number of lesions established per mouse, and all treatments diminished the implant volume. In addition, cell proliferation within the implants was statistically significantly reduced, and apoptosis was statistically significantly enhanced by all treatments. Also, we found that all treatments diminished the vascularized area in the lesion. Conclusion(s) These results are promising and reveal that celecoxib and rosiglitazone, combined or separately, have a beneficial effect on overall endometriotic growth.