Abstract: The mitogen-activated kinase phosphatase (MKPs), a intracellular phosphatase family that could hydrolyze the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) in cells, participate in the regulation of cell stress, differentiation, proliferation and apoptosis by the negative feedback regulation of MAPKs. The abnormal expression of MKP-1 was associated with the cancer occurrence and development. MKP-1 shows the strongest ability of dephosphorylation, which has been well studied as a member of the MKPs family. In this review, we summarized the effects of MKP-1 in the diseases associated with obstetrics and gynecology, including genital neoplasms, endometriosis and preeclampsia. The expression pattern, pathological function and molecular mechanism of MKP-1 in obstetrical and gynecological diseases were elucidated. After that, we focused on the pathophysiological effect of MKP-1 in endometriosis. The interaction between MKP-1 and MAPKs could provide us more references for the prospective research.

Key words: Mitogen-activated protein kinases, Dual specificity phosphatase 1, Genital neoplasms, female, Endometriosis, Pre-eclampsia