Date of Graduation
5-2015
Document Type
Thesis (MS)
Program Affiliation
Biomedical Sciences
Degree Name
Masters of Science (MS)
Advisor/Committee Chair
Karen Lu, MD
Committee Member
Rosemarie Schmandt, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Kwong K. Wong, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Samuel Mok, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Banu Arun, M.D.
Abstract
Obesity is a significant risk factor for endometrial cancer, the most common gynecologic malignancy in the United States, but much remains unclear about the relationship between obesity-related factors and the development of endometrial cancer. Omentin, a recently discovered adipokine, has been shown to be present in lower levels in patients who are obese and/or insulin resistant. A case-control study was conducted using the serum of 140 women with endometrial cancer and 75 women with endometrial hyperplasia who were matched 1:1 based on body mass index (BMI) and menopausal status to women with no history of endometrial cancer (controls). The concentration of omentin in the patients’ serum was experimentally determined by conducting tests in triplicate on an enzyme-linked immunoadsorbent assay (ELISA) specific to human omentin. The mean serum omentin levels of women with endometrial hyperplasia and endometrial cancer were statistically significantly lower than controls, regardless of BMI. The mechanism that induces this change remains unknown, but these results present exciting promise for omentin’s use as a biomarker and role in understanding the relationship between obesity-related factors and endometrial carcinoma.
Keywords
Omentin, Endometrial Cancer, Endometrial Hyperplasia