mRNA expression of TNF-α by administration of peripheral blood mononuclear cells into the uterine horn to improve pregnancy rate

Background: Spontaneous pregnancy loss is a surprisingly common occurrence, with approximately 15% of all clinically recognized pregnancies resulting in pregnancy failure. A wide range of cytokines and their receptors are expressed in many cell lineages of the uterine and conceptus tissues in distinct spatial and temporal patterns during the menstrual cycle and pregnancy. Here we examined whether administration of autologous peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) into the uterine horn can improve pregnancy rates following mouse embryo transfer (ET).Methods: In this study, first we determined that the abundance of TNF-α transcript in PBMCs was greatest after 24 h of culture. PBMCs that had been cultured for 24 h were gently administered non-surgically to the uterine horn on day 4 of the estrous cycle. On day 7, the ET was carried out and the pregnancy rate in the PBMC-treated group was compared with that in the non-treated group.Result: TNF-α transcript was expressed in mouse PBMCs, with transcript abundances after 24 h culture being approximately 200-fold higher than that in non-cultured (0 h) PBMCs. The pregnancy rate on day 60 in the PBMC-treated group was significantly higher than that in the non-treated group.Conclusion: These results indicate that administration of autologous PBMCs into the uterine horn increases mRNA expressions TNF-α and improves pregnancy rates following mouse ET.

Keywords:

Embryo transfer , Pregnancy , Peripheral blood mononuclear