Corachán A, Ferrero H, Escrig J, Monleon J, Faus A, Cervelló I, Pellicer A. Long-term vitamin D treatment decreases human uterine leiomyoma size in a xenograft animal model.
Fertil Steril 2019;
113:205-216.e4. [PMID:
31739978 DOI:
10.1016/j.fertnstert.2019.09.018]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2019] [Revised: 09/02/2019] [Accepted: 09/12/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE
To study the effects of short- and long-term vitamin D treatment on uterine leiomyomas in vivo through cell proliferation, extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation, and apoptosis.
DESIGN
Preclinical study of human leiomyoma treatment with vitamin D in an nonhuman animal model.
SETTING
Hospital and university laboratories.
PATIENT(S)/ANIMAL(S)
Human leiomyomas were collected from patients and implanted in ovariectomized NOD-SCID mice.
INTERVENTION(S)
Mice were treated with vitamin D (0.5 μg/kg/d or 1 μg/kg/d) or vehicle for 21 or 60 days.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S)
Vitamin D effect in xenograft tissue was assessed by monitoring tumor size (18F-FDG positron-emission tomography/computerized tomography and macroscopic examination), cell proliferation (immunohistochemistry and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction [qRT-PCR]), ECM (Western blot), transforming growth factor (TGF) β3 (qRT-PCR), and apoptosis (Westrn blot and TUNEL).
RESULT(S)
Short-term treatment with vitamin D did not appear to alter leiomyoma size, based on in vivo monitoring and macroscopic examination. However, long-term high-dose treatment induced a significant reduction in leiomyoma size. Cell proliferation was not decreased in the short term, whereas 1 μg/kg/d vitamin D in the long term significantly reduced proliferation compared with control. Although collagen-I and plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 were not modified by short-term treatment, they were both significantly reduced by long-term high-dose vitamin D. Similarly, long-term high-dose vitamin D significantly reduced TGF-β3 expression. Finally, apoptosis significantly increased with both short- and long-term high-dose vitamin D treatment.
CONCLUSION(S)
Long-term vitamin D acts as an antiproliferative, antifibrotic, and proapoptotic therapy that provides a safe, nonsurgical therapeutic option for reducing uterine leiomyoma size without side-effects.
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