Biomarker discovery in pre-menstrual endometrial biopsies

The endometrium undergoes profound progesterone-driven remodeling during the secretory phase of the menstrual cycle in a process called decidualization. In the absence of pregnancy, circulating progesterone levels fall and tissue-wide inflammation and influx of neutrophils precede tissue breakdown and menstrual shedding. These changes are accompanied by wide-scale transcriptomic changes that co-ordinate temporal changes throughout the secretory phase. Here, we sequenced whole endometrial biopsies to identify molecular biomarkers that mark specific stages of the secretory phase, including pre-menstrual tissues. 20 biopsies were timed to specific phases of the secretory cycle based on the donor's reported LH, the physical morphology of tissues observed via IHC and serum progesterone levels. Overall design: Endometrial mRNA profiles of biopsies obtained at different points of the menstrual cycle were generated by deep sequencing.