| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
OKADA Toshiya Faculty of Agriculture, Osaka Prefecture University, Assistant Professor, 農学部, 助手 (00169111)
YAMATE Jyoji Faculty of Agriculture, Osaka Prefecture University, Associate Professor, 農学部, 講師 (50150115)
MAKITA Takashi Faculty of Agriculture, Yamaguchi University, Professor, 農学部, 教授 (90035105)
MUKAMOTO Masaya Faculty of Agriculture, Osaka Prefecture University, Assistant Professor, 農学部, 助手 (80231629)
KANNAN Yukiko Faculty of Agriculture, Osaka Prefecture University, Assistant Professor, 農学部, 助手 (80264810)
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| Research Abstract |
Granular lymphocytes (GLs) are common inhabitants of mammalian uteri including not only the deciduata but the nondeciduata. In women and mice, these cells are transient, appear to terminally differentiate, and are hormonally dependent lymphocytes of a natural killer (NK) cell lineage. NK cells in the peripheral blood and spleen contribute to both innate and adaptive immunity by their prompt secretion of cytokines, including IFN-γ, and lysis of virally-infected and tumor cells without previous sensitization. The differentiation and function of tissue-based NK cells, such as uterine NK (uNK) cells, remain to be fully understood. We asked : 1) Are uNK cell precursors resident in the uterus? 2)When do uNK cell precursors first appear in the uterus? 3) Which factors influence the differentiation of uNK cells? 4) What are the interactions between uNK cells and extracellular matrix (ECM)?5)Does apoptosis account for the loss of uNK cells in late pregnancy? 6) How do uNK cells play crucial roles in pregnancy success? Our results are : 1) uNK cell precursors are present within nonpregnant uterine tissue and differentiate in situ, 2) the major population is replenished by precursors from other tissues, 3) the appearance of uNK cell precursors is a postnatal event, 4) ECMs play an important role in uNK cell behavior, including migration, viability, differentiation, and regulation of cytokine gene expression, 5) the Fas/Fas ligand system is the common apoptosis mediator also in uNK cells, 6) uNK cell apoptosis in late pregnancy is an important event, 7)uNK cells have critical function in pregnancy that promote decidual health, the appropriate vascularization of implantation sites, and placental size.
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