NU 2025-155
INVENTORS
SHORT DESCRIPTION
Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) were generated from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of women diagnosed with endometriosis or polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
BACKGROUND
Endometriosis and PCOS are complex, multifactorial reproductive disorders that affect millions of women worldwide and are major contributors to infertility and chronic pelvic pain. Despite their prevalence, progress in understanding their underlying mechanisms and developing effective treatments has been hampered by the limitations of existing disease models. Traditional animal models often fail to accurately recapitulate the human pathophysiology of these disorders due to species-specific differences in hormonal regulation and reproductive biology. Likewise, immortalized cell lines derived from non-patient sources lack the genetic and epigenetic context necessary to model disease heterogeneity and patient-specific responses. As a result, there remains a significant unmet need for physiologically relevant models of endometriosis and PCOS to better understand disease mechanisms and guide the development of targeted therapies.
ABSTRACT
Northwestern researchers have generated iPSCs by reprogramming PBMCs isolated from women with endometriosis or PCOS using Yamanaka genes. The resulting iPSC lines retain the genetic background of the donor, providing a unique platform to study cellular and molecular differences inherent to these conditions. Given that iPSCs can be differentiated into any cell type using published protocols, these patient-specific iPSC lines can be used to investigate disease mechanisms, identify biomarkers, and evaluate therapeutic responses across a wide range of physiologically relevant contexts.
APPLICATIONS
ADVANTAGES