The State of Peripheral Blood Natural Killer Cells and Cytotoxicity in Women with Recurrent Pregnancy Loss and Unexplained Infertility
Journal Title: International Journal of Fertility & Sterility - Year 2019, Vol 13, Issue 1
Abstract
Background: The prognostic value of peripheral natural killer (pNK) cells, as a screening test in women with recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) and unexplained infertility, is still a matter for discussion. The purpose of this study was to compare the percentage of circulating CD56+NK cells, CD69 and perforin markers between women with unexplained infertility and RPL with the healthy control group. Materials and Methods: In this case-control study, the percentage of CD56+NK cells and activation markers (CD69 and perforin levels) in the peripheral blood were measured in 25 women with unexplained infertility, 24 women with idiopathic RPL and 26 women from the healthy control group, using specific monoclonal antibodies by flow cytometry. Results: The percentage of CD56+NK cells was significantly higher in patients with infertility in comparison with the healthy control group (P=0.007). There were not significant differences either in the total number of CD56+ cells between the RPL group and the control group (P=0.2) or between the RPL group and the infertile group (P=0.36). The percentage of CD69+ lymphocytes in RPL group was significantly higher than in the infertility group (P=0.004). There was a statistically significant difference in Perforin levels between RLP and control (P=0.001) as well as RPL and infertile (P=0.002) groups. Conclusion: An increased percentage of CD56+NK cells in patients with unexplained infertility, an elevated expression of CD69 on NK cells in patients with RPL and infertility and a high level of perforin on CD56+ cells in the RPL group might be considered as immunological risk factors in these women.
Authors and Affiliations
Azam Azargoon, Yasaman Mirrasouli, Mahdieh Shokrollahi Barough, Mehdi Barati, Parviz Kokhaei
Prevalence of Sexual Dysfunction among Infertile Women in Iran: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Infertile women are at a higher risk of sexual dysfunction compared to fertile women. Infertility is a major source of stress, anxiety, and depression, which strongly affects sexual health. The aim of this study is to es...
Endometriosis of Diaphragm: A Case Report
Endometriosis affects about 10% of women of reproductive age. Its main feature is the presence of stroma and endometrial glands in sites other than the uterus, mainly in pelvis. Pelvic peritoneum, ovaries, uterine ligame...
Correlation of Copper and Zinc in Spontaneous Abortion
Background Humans require minute amounts of trace metals to maintain body’s normal growth and physiological functions; such elements may also play a vital role in pregnancy and pregnancy outcome. The present study was co...
Is There any Mean to Postpone The Menopausal Ovarian Senescence?
The ovarian reserve (OR) gradually decreases throughout the female fertile life. This continuous depletion in OR is irreversible. This occurs through a programmed cell death, known as apoptosis. Some factors hasten such...
Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha -308 G/A Single Nucleotide Polymorphism and Risk of Sperm Abnormalities in Iranian Males
Background Signaling molecules such as cytokines regulate spermatogenesis during the maturation of germ cells and sperm apoptosis. Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) is one of the most-documented cytokines that is involv...