Expression level of TNF-α in decidual tissue and peripheral blood of patients with recurrent spontaneous abortion

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine the express level of tumour necrosis factor α (TNF-α) in the decidual tissue and peripheral blood of patients with recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA). MATERIAL AND METHODS: Eighty RSA patients and 100 control women were recruited in this study. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was applied to determine the expression level of TNF-α in peripheral blood and decidual tissues from both groups. Additionally, the expression level of TNF-α was compared between RSA patients with different numbers of abortions, as well as primary and secondary RSA patients. RESULTS: The expression level of TNF-α in peripheral blood and decidual tissues of RSA patients was significantly higher compared to the controls (p < 0.001). Patients who had undergone RSA twice expressed TNF-α in peripheral blood and decidual tissues at a similar level to patients who had experienced RSA three times (p > 0.05), but significantly lower than patients who had experienced RSA more than three times (p < 0.001). The expression level of TNF-α in peripheral blood and decidual tissues was significantly higher in the secondary RSA patients, when compared with primary RSA patients (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, the relatively high expression level of TNF-α in decidual tissue and peripheral blood may be one of the causes of RSA and therefore could be used as a clinical indicator.