COX-2 gene promoter DNA methylation status in eutopic and ectopic endometrium of Egyptian women with endometriosis

The pathophysiology of COX-2 expression in endometriosis is a matter of debate. The aim was to investigate the role of DNA methylation of the NF-IL6 site within the promoter of COX-2 gene in the pathogenesis of endometriosis. The endometrial tissues (ectopic and eutopic) were collected from 60 women with endometriosis and 30 women without endometriosis (control group). The methylation status of COX-2 was examined by methylation-specific PCR. Quantitative real-time PCR (RT-PCR) was performed to measure COX-2 mRNA levels in endometrial tissues. We found significantly higher levels of COX-2 in ectopic endometriotic tissue compared with eutopic tissue. Also, we found that the frequencies of methylation status of the NF-IL6 site within the COX-2 promoter in the eutopic and ectopic endometrial tissues of endometriosis groups were significantly decreased in comparison to controls (P = 0.002, P = 0.000 respectively). Our study demonstrated that DNA hypomethylation of the NF-IL6 site within the promoter of COX-2 gene could be a key mechanism for its elevated expression in the eutopic and ectopic tissues of endometriosis.