Aberrant Methylation of the E-Cadherin Gene Promoter Region in the Endometrium of Women With Uterine Fibroids.

A uterine fibroid is a leiomyoma that originates from the smooth muscle layer of the uterus. A variety of endometrial abnormalities are associated with uterine fibroids. This study aims to investigate the methylation status of the E-cadherin gene (CDH1) promoter region in the endometrium of patients with uterine fibroids. The methylation of CDH1 was studied using methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction in the endometrial tissue of 102 patients with uterine fibroids and 50 control patients. The E-cadherin expression was examined by flow cytometry. The methylation rate of CDH1 promoter region was 33.3% in the endometrium of patients with uterine fibroids and 8% in the endometrium of women without fibroids. The frequency of CDH1 promoter methylation in the endometrium of patients with fibroids was significantly higher than that in the endometrium of women without fibroids (P = .001). Furthermore, the E-cadherin expression level in methylation-positive tissues was significantly lower than that in methylation-negative tissues (P = .017). These results suggest that epigenetic aberration of CDH1 may occur in the endometrium of patients with fibroids, which may be associated with E-cadherin protein expression in endometrial tissue.