Transcriptomics of the Human Endometrium and Embryo Implantation

Abstract The human endometrium undergoes cyclic remodeling and differentiation to provide an optimal environment for embryo implantation and development. Endometrial receptivity, the status of being amenable to implantation, is governed in part by gene expression changes. These changes are regulated by steroid hormones and paracrine molecules that, by acting through their respective receptors, alter the transcription of genes encoding growth factors, cytokines, chemokines, lipids, and adhesion molecules, among others. The transcriptome reflects the genes that are actively expressed at any given time in a specific cell population. Thus, transcriptome studies of the human endometrium have revealed hundreds of simultaneously up- and down-regulated genes involved in the acquisition of endometrial receptivity and embryo implantation. The advances in gene expression profiling, facilitated by the development of next-generation sequencing (NGS) techniques, make it possible to deepen the investigation of the endometrial receptivity process from a global genomic perspective.