Glycodelin-A as a modulator of trophoblast invasion

Trophoblast invasion is crucial to placentation. The relationship between decidual glycodelin-A and trophoblast invasion is not known. Invasiveness of First trimester extravillous cytotrophoblast-1 (TEV-1) cell line, TEV-1, cells was determined by trans-well invasion assay. The gene expression, protein secretion and activities of the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and -9, urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA), tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP)-1 and -2 and plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI-1) of glycodelin-A-treated cells were measured by quantitative PCR, ELISA and gel zymography, respectively. Glycodelin-A bound to TEV-1 cells. At a concentration of 1 mu g/ml, glycodelin-A, but not other glycodelin isoforms, suppressed the invasion of TEV-1 cells. The effect was glycosylation-dependent and was associated with reduction (P < 0.05) of MMP2, MMP9 and uPA activities in the conditioned medium from the treated culture. Glycodelin-A treatment suppressed the amount of MMP2 protein in the conditioned medium (P < 0.05) and MMP2 mRNA in the cells (P < 0.05), but did not affect that of MMP9. Glycodelin-A also significantly reduced the expression, secretion and activity of uPA (P < 0.05). The treatment did not affect the expression of TIMP-1, TIMP-2 or PAI-1, cell proliferation or survival of the cells. Glycodelin-A inhibits the invasion of extravillous cytotrophoblasts mainly by suppressing the activity of MMP2 and MMP9 in a glycosylation-dependent fashion.