Leukocytes infiltrate the myometrium during human parturition: further evidence that labour is an inflammatory process

Leukocytes infiltrate the myometrium during human parturition: further evidence that labour is an inflammatory process.

Inflammatory mediators in the cervix, placenta and fetal membranes play a crucial role in human parturition. The aim of this study was to determine whether the upper and lower segments of the myometrium are infiltrated by inflammatory cells during pregnancy and parturition. Myometrial biopsies were obtained from non-pregnant women, and pregnant women at term before and after the onset of sponta...

Leukocyte density and pro-inflammatory cytokine expression in human fetal membranes, decidua, cervix and myometrium before and during labour at term.

Accumulating evidence suggests that human parturition represents an inflammatory process. Leukocytes are known to infiltrate uterine tissues but the exact timing, nature and quantity of these cells has not been formally characterized. We have previously demonstrated an apparent increase in pro-inflammatory cytokines within tissues of the labouring uterus. The aims of this study were to quantify...

Cyclooxygenase-2 in Myometrium during Parturition and in Ovarian Carcinoma

NF-κB function in the human myometrium during pregnancy and parturition

kappaB (NF-κB) family of proteins (RelA, RelB, c-Rel, p50 and p52) and DNA are vital for cells to function normally; for example, in the human myometrium, NFκB-regulated pro-inflammatory mediators, including TNFα, IL-1ß, IL-8 and COX-2 are associated with the onset of labour. NF-κB, however, regulates the expression of over 400 genes, although it is unlikely these would all be activated in conc...

Turbulent ship wakes: further evidence that the Earth is round.

When viewed from the stern, a ship's turbulent wake appears as a narrow strip of bubble-whitened water converging toward the horizon. The wake does not reach a sharp point on the horizon but has a finite angular width, indicating that the Earth is not flat, but rather round. A simple analysis of the geometry of the observations shows that the radius of the Earth can be estimated using only simp...