Expression and significance of matrix metalloproteinase-2 and vascular endothelial growth factor in adenomyosis

Objective:To investigate the expression of MMP-2 and VEGF in different parts of adenomyosis and the roles of these factors in the pathophysiology of uterine adenomyosis.Methods:56 patients with histologically proved adenomyosis and 26 patients with normal uterus were adopted to detect expression of MMP-2 and VEGF in endometrium and myometrium of uterus by immunohistochemical staining.Results:The positive expression rate of MMP-2 in ectopic and eutopic endometrium were 71.4% and 67.5%, respectively, were higher than that of normal endometrium (42.3%, P﹤0.05). The positive expression rates of MMP-2 in myometrium around the ectopic lesions was significantly higher than that of normal myometrium (67.9% vs 34.6%, P﹤0.01); The positive expression rate of VEGF in eutopic and normal endometrium were 52.5% and 46.2%, respectively, were significantly lower than that of ectopic endometrium (75%,P0.05). The positive expression rates of VEGF in myometrium around ectopic lesions was significantly higher than that of normal myometrium (69.6% vs 38.5%, P0.05); The expression of MMP-2 was significantly correlated with VEGF in adenomyosis (P﹤0.01).Conclusion:The overexpression of MMP-2 in endometrium and myometrium may be related to overgrowth of smooth muscle of uterus and invasiveness of endometrium tissue during progression of adenomyosis. The overexpression of VEGF have close relationship with adenomyosis angiogenesis. MMP-2 and VEGF are two important factors involved in progression of adenomyosis.