Biosynthesis of miRNA in menstrual blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells in endometriosis

Posted July 21, 2023

After some studies showed that menstrual blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells and microRNAs (miRNAs) play a role in the onset and establishment of endometriosis, the INCT Hormona team at the Ribeirão Preto School of Medicine of Universidade de São Paulo (USP) conducted the first study to investigate the genes responsible for miRNA biosynthesis. The article, “Downregulation of DROSHA: Could It Affect miRNA Biogenesis in Endometriotic Menstrual Blood Mesenchymal Stem Cells?”, is available at https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36983035/.

According to INCT researcher Dr. Juliana Meola, this study is of great importance because endometriosis is a public health issue. “The disease affects one in 10 women of reproductive age, which accounts for approximately 176 million women worldwide, and is often related to pelvic pain and/or infertility,” she explains. “Its origin is still poorly understood but, with this study, we can now understand the differences between the two groups: healthy women and women with endometriosis.”

According to the article, differences in gene expression were detected and quantified using real-time polymerase chain reaction, which is considered the gold standard technique. “We found a two-fold decrease in the expression of DROSHA, one of the first in the sequence of several genes that are responsible for the adequate biosynthesis of these miRNAs, in the disease”, explains Dr. Meola. “What we don’t know is the effect of this discovery, that is, which miRNAs are altered in the disease resulting from this ‘defective’ gene and, consequently, which cellular mechanisms may be affected by this alteration, leading to endometriosis.”

Dr. Meola says new studies are needed to further understand endometriosis. “Our next step is to investigate which miRNAs are altered in these cells in endometriosis,” she concludes.