Wira CR

Mucosal integrity in the endometrium is essential for immune protection. Since breaches or injury to the epithelial barrier exposes underlying tissue and is hypothesized to increase infection risk, we determined whether endogenous progester…

Estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P) have potent effects on immune function in the human uterine endometrium which is essential for creating an environment conducive for successful reproduction. Type III/lambda (λ) interferons (IFN) are impl…

PROBLEM: The contribution of fibroblasts to innate immune protection of the human female reproductive tract (FRT) against viral pathogens is relatively unknown. METHOD OF STUDY: Endometrial (EM), endocervical (Cx) and ectocervical (ECx) fi…

Despite its anatomical location, the ovary is a site of pathogen exposure in the human female reproductive tract (FRT). However, the role of ovarian stromal fibroblasts in immune protection is unclear. We generated a population of ovarian s…

Disruption of the epithelium in the female reproductive tract (FRT) is hypothesized to increase HIV infection risk by interfering with barrier protection and facilitating HIV-target cell recruitment. Here we determined whether Tenofovir (TF…

Within the human female reproductive tract (FRT), the challenge of protection against sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is coupled with the need to enable successful reproduction. Oestradiol and progesterone, which are secreted during …

PROBLEM: Estradiol can directly affect epithelial cells or indirectly affect epithelial cells via stromal fibroblast secretion of growth factors, such as keratinocyte growth factor (KGF). The purpose of the present study was to determine wh…

The immune system in the female reproductive tract (FRT) does not mount an attack against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or other sexually transmitted infections (STI) with a single endogenously produced microbicide or with a single arm…

PROBLEM: Hepatocyte Growth Factor (HGF) secretion facilitates epithelial cell growth and development in the female reproductive tract (FRT) and may contribute to pathological conditions such as cancer and endometriosis. We hypothesized that…

The immune system in the female reproductive tract (FRT) does not mount an attack against HIV or other sexually transmitted infections (STI) with a single endogenously produced microbicide or with a single arm of the immune system. Instead,…

Primary human uterine, cervical, and ectocervical stromal fibroblasts constitutively secrete hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), yet only uterine stromal fibroblasts increase HGF secretion in response to estradiol. Estradiol-induced HGF secreti…

Viable tissue sections and isolated cell cultures from the human fallopian tube, uterus, cervix, and vaginal mucosa were examined for susceptibility to infection with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). We examined infectivity by u…