Overexpression and functional relevance of somatostatin receptor-1, -2, and -5 in endometrium and endometriotic lesions.

Context: Somatostatin plays a role in physiological and pathological cell proliferation and angiogenesis. Five subtypes of somatostatin receptors have been identified, and the therapeutic use of somatostatin receptor-selective agonists has been reported in several diseases.

Objectives: The aim was to describe the expression and the functional relevance of three human somatostatin receptors (sst1, sst2, and sst5) in tissues of women with and without endometriosis.