Interestingly, only BPH/5 e7.5 decidua showed a significant elevation of Hif-1α and Ho-1 mRNA with >6-fold increase in expression when cultured with leptin compared to BPH/5 e7.5 decidua cultured without leptin (Figs. 2A and 2B). Here, HMOX1 is linked to benign prostatic hyperplasia.