Correlation of calprotectin serum levels with degrees of endometriosis: A cross-sectional study Original paper
Researched by:
-
Karen Pendergrass
ID
Karen Pendergrass
Karen Pendergrass is a microbiome researcher specializing in microbiome-targeted interventions (MBTIs). She systematically analyzes scientific literature to identify microbial patterns, develop hypotheses, and validate interventions. As the founder of the Microbiome Signatures Database, she bridges microbiome research with clinical practice. In 2012, based on her own investigative research, she became the first documented case of FMT for Celiac Disease—four years before the first published case study.
-
Women’s Health
Women’s Health
Women’s health, a vital aspect of medical science, encompasses various conditions unique to women’s physiological makeup. Historically, women were often excluded from clinical research, leading to a gap in understanding the intricacies of women’s health needs. However, recent advancements have highlighted the significant role that the microbiome plays in these conditions, offering new insights and potential therapies. MicrobiomeSignatures.com is at the forefront of exploring the microbiome signature of each of these conditions to unravel the etiology of these diseases and develop targeted microbiome therapies.
-
Endometriosis
Endometriosis
Endometriosis involves ectopic endometrial tissue causing pain and infertility. Validated and Promising Interventions include Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT), Low Nickel Diet, and Metronidazole therapy.
-
Nutritional Immunity
Nutritional Immunity
Nutritional immunity restricts metal access to pathogens, leveraging sequestration, transport, and toxicity to control infections and immunity.
-
Karen Pendergrass
Researched by:
-
Karen Pendergrass
ID
Karen Pendergrass
Microbiome Signatures identifies and validates condition-specific microbiome shifts and interventions to accelerate clinical translation. Our multidisciplinary team supports clinicians, researchers, and innovators in turning microbiome science into actionable medicine.
Karen Pendergrass
What was studied?
This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the correlation between serum calprotectin levels and the severity of endometriosis. The primary objective was to determine whether calprotectin could serve as a non-invasive biomarker to distinguish the different stages of endometriosis severity based on the revised American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) classification.
Who was studied?
A total of 46 women diagnosed with endometriosis undergoing laparoscopic or laparotomy procedures at three tertiary hospitals in Jakarta, Indonesia, between July 2017 and April 2018 were enrolled. Blood samples were collected one day prior to surgery, and serum calprotectin was measured using the Phical® ELISA method. Diagnosis and classification of endometriosis were confirmed via histopathological examination following surgery. Exclusion criteria included comorbidities such as diabetes, hypertension, infections, liver disease, or recent corticosteroid/immunosuppressant therapy.
Most important findings:
The distribution of endometriosis stages among participants was as follows: minimal (15.2%), mild (39.1%), moderate (34.8%), and severe (10.9%). Median serum calprotectin levels showed modest variation across groups, with the highest levels in the minimal group (138.98 ng/mL) and the lowest in the mild group (121.49 ng/mL). However, Spearman’s correlation analysis revealed no statistically significant correlation between serum calprotectin levels and the degree of endometriosis (r = –0.16; p = 0.278).
Interestingly, age and BMI showed a moderate positive correlation with endometriosis severity (r = 0.37 and 0.36, respectively; both p <0.05), which could imply that these host factors are more predictive of disease progression than calprotectin levels.
Despite calprotectin’s recognized value as a biomarker in other chronic inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, obesity, and Crohn’s disease—where it reflects systemic inflammation and correlates with CRP and disease activity—the results of this study do not support its utility in endometriosis staging. The authors acknowledge that calprotectin’s utility may be more pronounced in localized samples such as feces or peritoneal fluid rather than systemic circulation, where inflammation may not be as detectably elevated in endometriosis.
Implications:
This study provides evidence against the clinical utility of serum calprotectin as a non-invasive biomarker for grading endometriosis severity. While calprotectin is a well-established marker of inflammation in other systemic and localized inflammatory diseases, its lack of correlation with endometriosis stages underscores the complexity of the disease’s inflammatory profile. The findings suggest that systemic markers may not adequately reflect the localized inflammatory microenvironment of endometriotic lesions. The authors recommend further research exploring calprotectin in peritoneal fluid or fecal samples, which may better capture localized inflammatory processes relevant to endometriosis pathogenesis.
Endometriosis
Endometriosis involves ectopic endometrial tissue causing pain and infertility. Validated and Promising Interventions include Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT), Low Nickel Diet, and Metronidazole therapy.