PCGEM1 promotes cell proliferation and migration in endometriosis by targeting miR-124-3p-mediated ANTXR2 expression

BACKGROUND: Endometriosis, a common gynaecological disease in women, affects 10% of women of childbearing age. Among infertile women, this proportion is as high as 30–50%. Despite the high prevalence of endometriosis, the pathogenesis of endometriosis is still unclear. METHODS: In the present study, bioinformatics analysis and molecular and animal experiments were employed to explore the functions of PCGEM1 in the pathogenesis of endometriosis. We established an endometriosis rat model and isolated endometrial stromal cells (ESCs) and primary normal ESCs (NESCs). Bioinformatics analysis was adopted to study the roles of PCGEM1 in promoting the pathogenesis of endometriosis. Luciferase reporter assays and RNA pull-down assays were carried out to study the mechanism by which PCGEM1 regulates ANTXR2. RESULTS: Our results indicated that PCGEM1 promoted the motility and proliferation of ectopic endometrial cells, and the underlying mechanism was due to the direct binding of PCGEM1 to miR-124-3p to modulate ANTXR2 expression. CONCLUSION: PCGEM1 can influence endometrial stromal cell proliferation and motility and may be a novel therapeutic target for endometriosis. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12905-023-02250-1.