WSU Research May Lead to New Infertility Treatments for Women
PULLMAN, Wash. -- Professor of molecular biosciences Michael
Skinner, director of the Center for Reproductive Biology at
Washington State University, collaborated on work that may lead to
new treatments for infertility in women.
Skinner's research is the subject of an article in the May 5 issue
of Nature magazine entitled "LPA3-mediated lysophosphatidic acid
signaling in embryo implantation and spacing."
At present, the cause for infertility is unexplained in about 20
percent of all cases.
In a healthy uterus, the lipid lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), along
with its protein receptors (LPA3), which are normally found in
cells on the uterine wall, are key to a number of factors that
affect pregnancy, including proper implantation of embryos.
Using mice that had been genetically engineered to eliminate their
LPA receptors as a model, the team found significant instances of
reduced litter size, delayed development of embryos and other
abnormal implantation conditions.
The team, led by Jerold Chun of the Scripps Research Institute in
La Jolla, Calif., found that, in a uterus with reduced LPA3
receptors, an enzyme, cyclooxygenase 2, which aids in embryo
implantation, was also reduced. This, in turn, led to decreased
prostaglandins, which are also crucial for implantation. In
experiments designed to correct for the defect, the team
administered prostacyclin (a hormone in the prostaglandin family),
which partially reversed the results of the condition, giving hope
that a drug treatment could be developed to correct the condition
in women.
The finding may be of particular importance to women receiving in
vitro embryo transplant treatments for infertility because, when
such fertility treatments are not successful, the failure of
embryos to properly implant in the lining of the uterus is a
primary cause.
Skinner earned a doctorate at WSU in 1982 and joined the faculty in
1996. He serves on the board of directors of the Biotechnology
Industry Organization and receives major research funding from the
National Institutes of Health for work on male reproduction and
from the Environmental Protection Agency for studies of the
reproductive toxicology of endocrine disruptors. He is also the
director of the WSU Center for Integrated Biotechnology.
Lead author of the Nature magazine article is Xiaoqin Ye of Chun's
lab.