Enhanced Macrophages for Endometrial Lesion Clearance

Endometriosis, a condition where endometrial-like tissue forms lesions outside the uterus, causes pelvic pain, excessive bleeding, dysmenorrhea, and infertility. There is no cure; symptom management relies on hormonal treatments or surgery. Macrophages are immune cells that clear cells, pathogens, and debris via phagocytosis. Our lab has shown that expression of hyperactive proteins result in enhanced macrophage phagocytosis of antibody opsonized targets. Our research aims to determine whether macrophages can be utilized to clear ectopic lesions by targeting upregulated antigens. Endometrial epithelial spheroids, a 3D cellular model that mimics lesions, upregulate CD47, a transmembrane protein that acts as a macrophage “don’t eat me” signal. We cocultured enhanced macrophages with aCD47 antibodies and spheroids to find that over-expression of candidate proteins increase antibody-dependent phagocytosis providing insight into the potential of enhanced macrophages for endometriosis.