| Summary: | Studies indicate an association between both term labour (TL) and preterm labour (PTL) and the presence of uterine inflammatory cytokines and leukocyte infiltration. We hypothesized that peripheral leukocytes are recruited to uterine tissues by locally produced cytokines where they contribute to the initiation of TL and PTL. The cytokine expression profile was analyzed using an in vivo mouse model of gestation and two PTL models (Lipopolysaccharide- and RU486-induced). Myometrial neutrophil and macrophage infiltration was also studied. My results demonstrate that macrophage infiltration precedes neutrophil infiltration during late gestation and that both leukocyte subsets increase during PTL and further increase post partum. These changes in leukocyte numbers are associated with significant changes in multiple myometrial cytokines with TL and RU486-induced PTL showing similar cytokine profiles. Importantly, post partum involution, the process by which the uterus completes the reproductive cycle and returns to its pre-pregnant state, appears similar in all three models.
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