Table 4.

Description of 10 most‐differentially expressed cytokines in menstrual versus venous blood samples

Cytokine		Type	Functions	Refs.
Chemokine (C‐C motif) ligand 2	CCL2	Chemokine	Chemotaxis for monocytes, T lymphocytes and basophils Follicular chemotaxis for macrophages in ovulation	1 , 13
Chemokine (C‐C motif) ligands 4	CCL4	Chemokine	Chemotaxis for natural killer (NK) cells and monocytes Endometrial NK recruitment during secretory phase	14 , 15
Interleukin 8	IL‐8	Interleukin	Chemotaxis for neutrophils and T cells Endometrial angiogenesis and repair	1 , 16
Leukemia inhibitory factor	LIF	Interleukin	Hematopoietic differentiation Blastocyst attachment and formation of maternal decidua Stimulates prostaglandin synthesis	17 , 18
Interleukin 6	IL‐6	Interleukin	Induces synthesis of inflammatory acute phase proteins Stimulates angiogenesis, antibody production, effector T‐cells	19
Interleukin 1 receptor antagonist	IL‐1RA	Interleukin	Suppresses inflammation via inhibition of IL1a and IL1β	20
Interleukin 1β	IL‐1β	Interleukin	Induces inflammatory signaling through the inflammasome when proteolytically activated by caspase‐1 Stimulates growth factor, cytokine secretion by endometrial cells	20 , 21
Fibroblast growth factor 2	FGF2	Growth Factor	Regulates cellular proliferation, migration, differentiation, and angiogenesis Expressed by endometrial epithelial cells to regulate endometrial receptivity and blastocyst implantation	22 , 23
Tumor necrosis factor alpha	TNF‐α	Tumor Necrosis factor	Regulates inflammation, apoptosis and proliferation	1