{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,15]],"date-time":"2026-09-15T11:15:05Z","timestamp":1789470905006,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,3,20]],"date-time":"2024-03-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1710892800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Immunol."],"abstract":"<jats:p>Natural killer (NK) cells, with a unique NK cell receptor phenotype, are abundantly present in the non-pregnant (endometrium) and pregnant (decidua) humanuterine mucosa. It is hypothesized that NK cells in the endometrium are\u00a0precursors for decidual NK cells present during pregnancy. Microenvironmental changes can alter the phenotype of NK cells, but it is unclear whether decidual NK cell precursors in the endometrium alter their NK cell receptor repertoire under the influence of pregnancy. To examine whether decidual NK cell precursors reveal phenotypic modifications upon pregnancy, we immunophenotyped the NK cell receptor repertoire of both endometrial and early-pregnancy decidual NK cells using flow cytometry. We showed that NK cells in pre-pregnancy endometrium have a different phenotypic composition compared to NK cells in early-pregnancy decidua. The frequency of killer-immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR expressing NK cells, especially KIR2DS1, KIR2DL2L3S2, and KIR2DL2S2 was significantly lower in decidua, while the frequency of NK cells expressing activating receptors NKG2D, NKp30, NKp46, and CD244 was significantly higher compared to endometrium. Furthermore, co-expression patterns showed a lower frequency of NK cells co-expressing KIR3DL1S1 and KIR2DL2L3S2 in decidua. Our results provide new insights into the adaptations in NK cell receptor repertoire composition that NK cells in the uterine mucosa undergo upon pregnancy.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fimmu.2024.1353556","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,3,20]],"date-time":"2024-03-20T00:44:37Z","timestamp":1710895477000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":18,"title":["NK cell receptor profiling of endometrial and decidual NK cells reveals pregnancy-induced adaptations"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Dorien","family":"Feyaerts","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Marilen","family":"Benner","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gaia","family":"Comitini","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Wijs","family":"Shadmanfar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Olivier W.H.","family":"van der Heijden","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Irma","family":"Joosten","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Renate G.","family":"van der Molen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,3,20]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1600-0897.2004.00217.x","article-title":"The immune environment in human endometrium during the window of implantation","volume":"52","author":"Lobo","year":"2004","journal-title":"Am J Reprod Immunol"},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1172\/JCI68107","article-title":"Uterine NK cells: active regulators at the maternal-fetal interface","volume":"124","author":"Moffett","year":"2014","journal-title":"J Clin Invest"},{"key":"B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.8755-8920.2000.430405.x","article-title":"Menstrual cycle dependent fluctuations in NK and T-lymphocyte subsets from non-pregnant human endometrium","volume":"43","author":"Flynn","year":"2000","journal-title":"Am J Reprod Immunol"},{"key":"B4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/humrep\/dey001","article-title":"Endometrial natural killer (NK) cells reveal a tissue-specific receptor repertoire","volume":"33","author":"Feyaerts","year":"2018","journal-title":"Hum Reprod"},{"key":"B5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4049\/jimmunol.181.3.1869","article-title":"Endometrial NK cells are special immature cells that await pregnancy","volume":"181","author":"Manaster","year":"2008","journal-title":"J Immunol"},{"key":"B6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/nm1452","article-title":"Decidual NK cells regulate key developmental processes at the human fetal-maternal interface","volume":"12","author":"Hanna","year":"2006","journal-title":"Nat Med"},{"key":"B7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4049\/jimmunol.1001637","article-title":"Immature NK cells, capable of producing IL-22, are present in human uterine mucosa","volume":"185","author":"Male","year":"2010","journal-title":"J Immunol"},{"key":"B8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1210\/jcem.86.4.7418","article-title":"Angiogenic growth factor messenger ribonucleic acids in uterine natural killer cells","volume":"86","author":"Li","year":"2001","journal-title":"J Clin Endocrinol Metab"},{"key":"B9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4049\/jimmunol.1300958","article-title":"Uterine NK cells regulate endometrial bleeding in women and are suppressed by the progesterone receptor modulator asoprisnil","volume":"191","author":"Wilkens","year":"2013","journal-title":"J Immunol"},{"key":"B10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.blre.2005.10.001","article-title":"Human natural killer cell development and biology","volume":"20","author":"Farag","year":"2006","journal-title":"Blood Rev"},{"key":"B11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/intimm\/dxn105","article-title":"Regulatory role of NKp44, NKp46, DNAM-1 and NKG2D receptors in the interaction between NK cells and trophoblast cells. 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