Role of genes involved in the regulation of apoptosis in the pathogenesis of genital endometriosis. A literature review

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The high prevalence, the lack of reliable data on the etiology, as well as the complexity of diagnosis and treatment of genital endometriosis indicate the urgency of the problem. AIM: The aim of this study was to analyze and summarize scientific publications devoted to the study of single-nucleotide polymorphisms involved in apoptosis and their association with endometriosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Based on keyword searches for gene, SNP, apoptosis, and endometriosis, a selection of papers published in open sources (PubMed and Google Scholar) in the period from 2010 to 2020 was performed. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: An analysis of the main and auxiliary apoptotic pathways was performed, with the protein regulators and their genes detailed in accordance with the implementation of the programmed cell death cascade in genital endometriosis. The review identified the significance of a number of proteins (TNF-, FADD, CASP3, CASP7, CASP10) in the pathogenesis of hyperproliferative diseases. However, many apoptotic regulators (BCL2, BIK, BMF, HRK, BAD, Survivin) in genital endometriosis were found to have been understudied, which makes future research in this direction promising.