Ferroptosis: a novel pathway in the pathogenesis and treatment of endometriosis

As a common chronic disease, endometriosis (EMs) affects nearly 10% of women of childbearing age, may cause other complications such as infertility, and has a tendency to develop malignant tumors. Ferroptosis is a newly discovered apoptotic process characterized by intracellular free iron excess, which mediates Fenton reaction and eventually leads to lipid peroxidation in the cell membrane leading to cell death. The abnormal changes of intracellular iron concentration may lead to the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the imbalance of redox homeostasis, thus leading to the occurrence of iron death. At present, the pathogenesis and effect of iron death on EMs are not completely clear, and the study of its physiological and pathological mechanism is very important for its diagnosis and treatment. This article reviews the research progress of the occurrence and development of EMs in order to provide new ideas for the pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment of EMs.