Abstract
Pyometra, the purulent inflammation of the uterus, is a common uterine disease of bitches that has potentially life-threatening consequences. The opportunistic bacterial infection of the uterus often progresses into the serious systemic inflammatory response syndrome. In a previous study, we characterized epithelial foam cells in the canine endometrial surface occurring in metestrus, and we regularly observed pronounced epithelial foam-cell formations in pyometra-affected uteri. Therefore, it was assumed that the mechanism behind lipid droplet accumulation in surface epithelial cells might even increase bacterial binding capacity and promote pyometra development. Lipid droplet accumulation in epithelial cells is accomplished via specialized lipid receptors called scavenger receptors (SR). Scavenger receptor class B type 1 (SR-B1) is an important receptor for lipid accumulation in diverse cell types, but it is also a strong binding partner for bacteria, and thereby enhances bacterial adhesion and clinical signs of systemic inflammatory response syndrome. In the present study, after the isolation of metestrous surface epithelial cells from canine uteri by laser capture microdissection, SR-B1 was identified at the messenger RNA (mRNA) level by quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction and also at the protein level by means of immunohistochemistry. In pyometra-affected uteri, SR-B1 mRNA expression was higher than that in the healthy control samples, and SR-B1 protein was expressed in the surface and crypt epithelial cells. Furthermore, to understand the physiological role of SR-B1 expression in the metestrus surface epithelial cells, we investigated its expression in the epithelial cells of the glandular chambers of canine placenta in different stages of gestation because these cells are also characterized by lipid droplet accumulation. SR-B1 was present in the placental epithelial cells of the glandular chambers from 25 to 30 and 45 to 50 days of gestation, where basal and basal and/or apical expression patterns were observed. The physiological expression of SR-B1 in metestrous endometrial surface epithelia might be related to the implantation process and embryo development, as SR-B1 was also identified in the epithelial cells of the canine placental chambers. The increased levels of SR-B1 in pyometra-affected uteri indicate a potential role for this scavenger receptor in endometrial bacterial adhesion.