Cervical mucins

Eriksen, G. Carlstedt, I. Uldbjerg, N. Ernst, E. Cervical mucins affect the motility of human spermatozoa in vitro. Eertil. Steril. 1998, 70, 350-354. 

Fig. 8.—Linear Model for Cervical Mucin, Consisting of Basic Units or T-Domains Linked by Naked Peptide Regions, Some by Disulfide Bridging. [Airowed regions are susceptible to thiol attack. From Ref. 53. Key T, T-domain X or X, bask unit and Y, subunit. ]...

Fig. 9.— Double Log Plots of (a) Intrinsic Viscosity, (b) the Reciprocal of the Diffiision Coefficient, and (c) Sedimentation Coefficient Data versus Molecular Weight for Human Cervical Mucins. [Key and O, whole mucins and , subunits and A, T-domains. Molecular weights determined from Zimm plots (filled symbols) or the Svedbeig equation using QLS (open symbols). Values for the slopes are in all cases consistent with a random-coil model and not with a rigid sphere or a rod.]...

Cox (168) has described the precoital use of minipill progestagens. Using megestrol acetate (500 pg), he found that the effect of a single minipill upon cervical mucin was fully apparent four hours after administration and lasted c. 18 hours (cf. p. 192). By restricting coital activity from four hours through 14 hours after administration of the pill, excellent fertility control was obtained in a limited study. Further work will be awaited with interest. 

Table 5.4 characteristics of cervical mucin (ovulation assumed to occur on day 14)... 

The acellular part of cervical mucin is composed of cervical plasma and... 

The viscosity of mucus is affected by binding between calcium and the mucus, which probably arises from an ionic interaction with the sialic acid in the mucin. These variations are indicated by a change in the pH, viscoelastic properties, water, and protein content of cervical mucus. Calcium is needed to establish an intercellular contact and the assembly of tight junction in the cervical epithelium. Changes in extracellular calcium affect the permeability of tight junctions and play a role in regulating the production of cervical mucus.Prostaglandin concentrations... 

Wolf, D. Sokoloski, J. Khan, M. Litt, M. Human cervical mucus. HI. Isolation and characterization of rheological active mucin. Eertil. Steril. 1977, 28, 53-58. 

Increases in both serum and urine TATI are common in ovarian cancer. In mucinous ovarian cancers, approximately 45% of patients have increased TATI in stage I, and 90% to 100% have increases by stage Fifly-five percent to 60% of patients with late stage endometrial cancer have increased serum TATI however, only 20% show an increase in early stages. TATI is increased in cervical cancer, but squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCCA) and CEA are better markers. 

Each of these factors contributes to the unique microstructure of mucus, which should be understood prior to the development of gene vectors capable of passing efficiently through the mucosal barrier. Hydrophobic interactions between mucin polymers cause mucus to form a fine network. In cervical mucus, this network consists of a fine mesh with interfiber spacings of approximately 100 nm within a macroporous mesh of interfiber spacings approximately 500 nm... 

It was originally suggested that the links between the basic units are through intermolecular disulfide bridging between cysteine residues in the naked end r ons. Reduction of mucins by thiols produced the M, 500,000 forms (see, for example. Refs. 26 and 36). However, Creeth observed a variety of forms in the 0.5-2.0 X 10 r on, and subsequent observations on cervical and other mucins by Carlstedt and Sheehan S yielded, in the presence of guanidine hydrochloride (Gu-HQ), species having forms M, 2 X 10 which they referred to as... 

One important feature of mucins is their behavior as polyelectrolytes for example, this has been postulated as a possible control-mechanism in the periodic changes in cervical mucus. This behavior is a result of the relatively large proportion of acidic sugar residues (NeuAc) normally present. 

A prior study has reported uterine cervical adenocarcinomas with intestinal features to be negative for both CDX2 and CK20, but a few recent studies have shown nuclear CDX2 immunoreactivity in up to 30% of cervical adenocarcinomas. This immunoreactivity is seen not only with rniillerian mucinous or intestinal mucinous differentiation but also in endometrioid tumors of the uterine cervix. However, dominant CK7 reactivity is useful in determining gynecologic origin. 

Qiu W, Mittal K. Comparison of morphologic and immunohistochemical features of cervical microglandular hyperplasia with low-grade mucinous adenocarcinoma of the endometrium. Int ] Gynecol Pathol. 2003 22 261-265. 

Wentzensen N, du Bois AD, Kommoss S, et al. No metastatic cervical adenocarcinomas in a series of pl6INK4a-positive mucinous or endometrioid advanced ovarian carcinomas An analysis of the AGO Ovarian Cancer Study Group. Int J Gynecol Pathol. 2008 27 18-23. 

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