"Several studies indicate that differential expression of peritoneal mesothelial adhesion factors occurs in women with endometriosis, providing potential ectopic endometrial cell attachment sites for the establishment of endometriosis lesions. Changes in the peritoneal mesothelial cell phenotype, including loss of tight junctions, may allow ectopic cells to bind to, or early lesions to invade into, the extracellular matrix.... Peritoneal immune scavenging function may be lowered in women with endometriosis; for example there is a notable increase in macrophage-derived secretion products in women with endometriosis associated with increases in cell proliferation, cell adhesion and neovascularization. CONCLUSIONS: The pelvic peritoneum appears to play a key role in the development and maintenance of endometriosis."
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23720497
