Endometriosis is a complex, inflammatory disease that affects 6-10% of reproductive-aged women. Almost half of the women with endometriosis experience infertility. Despite the excessive prevalence, the pathogenesis of endometriosis and its associated infertility is unknown and a cure is not available. While many theories have been suggested to link endometriosis and infertility, a consensus among investigators has not emerged. In this extensive review of the literature as well as research from our laboratory, we provide potential insights into the role of immune dysfunction in endometriosis associated infertility. We discuss the implication of the peritoneal inflammatory microenvironment on various factors that contribute to infertility such as hormonal imbalance, oxidative stress and how these could further lead to poor oocyte, sperm and embryo quality, impaired receptivity of the endometrium and implantation failure.
PMID 27740937 27740937 DOI 10.18632/oncotarget.12577 10.18632/oncotarget.12577 Miller et al. 2016, Miller 2016
Cite this article
Miller, J. E., Ahn, S. H., Monsanto, S. P., Khalaj, K., Koti, M., & Tayade, C. (2017). Implications of immune dysfunction on endometriosis associated infertility. Oncotarget, 8(4), 7138-7147. https://doi.org/10.18632/oncotarget.12577
Miller JE, Ahn SH, Monsanto SP, Khalaj K, Koti M, Tayade C. Implications of immune dysfunction on endometriosis associated infertility. Oncotarget. 2017;8(4):7138-7147. doi:10.18632/oncotarget.12577
Miller, J. E., et al. "Implications of immune dysfunction on endometriosis associated infertility." Oncotarget, vol. 8, no. 4, 2017, pp. 7138-7147.
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