Figure 2.

Proposed effect of the indicated adipokines on endometriotic tissue based on the current state of research. Additional studies are necessary to further substantiate the role of these adipokines in endometriosis. It can be expected that the recent report suggesting apelin receptor APLNR to be one of three key genes in endometriosis resulting from in silico analyses of DNA microarray data will encourage functional studies to elucidate underlying molecular mechanisms. Red arrows indicate adverse effects on endometriosis; green inhibitor arrows indicate beneficial effects. In text boxes, red arrows indicate the up-regulation and green ones the down-regulation of the respective pathways. White arrows indicate an increase or decline in the adipokine concentration in the blood/peritoneal fluid of women with endometriosis.