Speaker: Carina Masferrer Ferragutcasas, group of Biomedical Research in Gynecology (VHIR)

Endometriosis is a chronic, heterogeneous condition with a lot of unmet clinical needs. Current clinical staging does not correlate with clinical features of the disease, pathophysiology of the condition is not well understood, and therapeutic options do not address the underlying causes of the disease. Post-operative recurrence is around 30-50% after five years, and there is no strategy to predict prognosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the heterogeneity of ovarian endometriosis tissues based on their proteomic signatures and to identify prognostic biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets. By obtaining the proteomic expression profiles of 159 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) endometrioma lesions from 94 patients using non-targeted mass spectrometry, we identified three main molecular subtypes of endometrioma, differing in stromal and immune content but apparently similar regarding prognosis. Several proteins were identified as potential markers for recurrence, globally and in each subtype, and functional analysis pointed to alterations on the immune system and metabolism as the main contributors.

Host: Eva Colás Ortega,  head of group, Biomedical Research in Gynaecology (VHIR)