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Abstract
The placenta is an ephemeral but critical organ for the survival of all eutherian mammals and marsupials. It is the primary messenger system between the mother and fetus, where communicational signals, nutrients, waste, gases, and extrinsic factors are exchanged. Although the placenta may buffer the fetus from various environmental insults, placental dysfunction might also contribute to detrimental developmental origins of adult health and disease effects. The placenta of one sex over the other might possess greater ability to respond and buffer against environmental insults. Given the potential role of the placenta in effecting the lifetime health of the offspring, it is not surprising that there has been a resurging interest in this organ, including the Human Placental Project launched by the National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development. In this review, we will compare embryological development of the laboratory mouse and human chorioallantoic placentae. Next, evidence that various species, including humans, exhibit normal sex-dependent structural and functional placental differences will be examined followed by how in utero environmental changes (nutritional state, stress, and exposure to environmental chemicals) might interact with fetal sex to affect this organ. Recent data also suggest that paternal state impacts placental function in a sex-dependent manner. The research to date linking placental maladaptive responses and later developmental origins of adult health and disease effects will be explored. Finally, we will focus on how sex chromosomes and epimutations may contribute to sex-dependent differences in placental function, the unanswered questions, and future directions that warrant further consideration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cheryl S Rosenfeld
- Departments of Bond Life Sciences Center, Biomedical Sciences, Genetics Area Program, and Research Faculty Member for the Thompson Center for Autism and Neurobehavioral Disorders, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211
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202
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Cox B, Leavey K, Nosi U, Wong F, Kingdom J. Placental transcriptome in development and pathology: expression, function, and methods of analysis. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2015; 213:S138-51. [PMID: 26428493 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajog.2015.07.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2015] [Revised: 07/29/2015] [Accepted: 07/30/2015] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
The placenta is the essential organ of mammalian pregnancy and errors in its development and function are associated with a wide range of human pathologies of pregnancy. Genome sequencing has led to methods for investigation of the transcriptome (all expressed RNA species) using microarrays and next-generation sequencing, and implementation of these techniques has identified many novel species of RNA including: micro-RNA, long noncoding RNA, and circular RNA. These species can physically interact with both each other and regulatory proteins to modify gene expression and messenger RNA to protein translation. Transcriptome analysis is actively used to investigate placental development and dysfunction in pathologies ranging from preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction to preterm labor. Genome-wide gene expression analysis is also being applied to identify prognostic and diagnostic biomarkers of these disorders. In this comprehensive review we summarize transcriptome biology, methods of isolation and analysis, application to placental development and pathology, and use in diagnostic analysis in maternal blood. Key information for analysis methods is organized into quick reference tables where current analysis techniques and tools are cited and compared. We have created this review as a practical guide and starting reference for those interested in beginning an investigation into the transcriptome of the placenta.
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203
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Brantley JN, Verla TD. Use of Placental Membranes for the Treatment of Chronic Diabetic Foot Ulcers. Adv Wound Care (New Rochelle) 2015; 4:545-559. [PMID: 26339533 PMCID: PMC4529081 DOI: 10.1089/wound.2015.0634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2015] [Accepted: 03/23/2015] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Significance: Chronic diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) remain a challenge for physicians to treat. High mortality rates for DFU patients have pointed to the low effectiveness of standard care and lack of quality wound care products. The composition (collagen-rich tissue matrix and endogenous growth factors and cells) and functional properties (anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and angiogenic) of placental membranes are uniquely suited to address the needs of chronic wounds. This led to the commercialization of placental membranes, which are now widely available to physicians as a new advanced wound treatment option. Recent Advances: Progress in tissue processing and preservation methods has facilitated the development of placental products for wounds. Currently, a variety of commercial placental products are available to physicians for the treatment of chronic DFUs and other wounds. This review summarizes the key factors that negatively impact DFU healing (including social factors, such as smoking, vascular deficiencies, hyperglycemia, and other metabolic abnormalities), describes the structure and biology of placental membranes, and overviews commercially available placental products for wounds and data from the most recent DFU clinical trials utilizing commercial placental membranes. Critical Issues: Although the effects of diabetes on wound healing are complex and not fully understood, some of the key factors and pathways that interfere with healing have been identified. However, a multidisciplinary approach for the assessment of patients with chronic DFUs and guidelines for selection of appropriate treatment modalities remain to be implemented. Future Directions: The biological properties of placental membranes show benefits for the treatment of chronic DFUs, but scientific and clinical data for commercially available placental products are limited. Therefore, we need (1) more randomized, controlled clinical trials for commercial placental products; (2) studies that help to understand the timing of placental products' application and criteria for patient selection; and (3) studies comparing the functional properties of different commercially available placental products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan N. Brantley
- Department of Surgery, Hunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center, Richmond, Virginia
| | - Thomas D. Verla
- Department of Surgery, Hunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center, Richmond, Virginia
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204
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Ultrastructure of Placenta of Gravidas with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus. Obstet Gynecol Int 2015; 2015:283124. [PMID: 26379710 PMCID: PMC4561319 DOI: 10.1155/2015/283124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2015] [Accepted: 07/15/2015] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Objectives. Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) leads to an abnormal placental environment which may cause some structural alterations of placenta and affect placental development and function. In this study, the ultrastructural appearances of term placentas from women with GDM and normal pregnancy were meticulously compared. Materials and Methods. The placenta tissues of term birth from 10 women with GDM and 10 women with normal pregnancy were applied with the signed informed consent. The morphology of fetomaternal interface of placenta was examined using light microscopy (LM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Results. On LM, the following morphological changes in villous tissues were found in the GDM placentas when compared with the control placentas: edematous stroma, apparent increase in the number of syncytial knots, and perivillous fibrin deposition. On TEM, the distinct ultrastructural alterations indicating the degeneration of terminal villi were found in the GDM placentas as follows: thickening of the basal membrane (BM) of vasculosyncytial membrane (VSM) and the VSM itself, significantly fewer or even absent syncytiotrophoblastic microvilli, swollen or completely destroyed mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum, and syncytiotrophoblasts with multiple vacuoles. Conclusion. Ultrastructural differences exist between GDM and control placentas. The differences of placenta ultrastructure are likely responsible for the impairment of placental barrier and function in GDM.
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205
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Li H, Wu B, Geng J, Zhou J, Zheng R, Chai J, Li F, Peng J, Jiang S. Integrated analysis of miRNA/mRNA network in placenta identifies key factors associated with labor onset of Large White and Qingping sows. Sci Rep 2015; 5:13074. [PMID: 26272496 PMCID: PMC4536519 DOI: 10.1038/srep13074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2015] [Accepted: 07/16/2015] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Labour onset is a very complex physiological process, and its mechanism is poorly understood. Here, we obtained the mRNA and miRNA expression profiles from the placentas of four groups of sows: Qingping sows 112 days after insemination with signs of labour onset (QS), Qingping sows 114 days after insemination with signs of labour onset (QL), Large White sows 114 days after insemination with signs of labour onset (LL) and Large White sows 112 days after insemination without signs of labour onset (LN). A set of differentially expressed genes, including 2164 mRNAs and 39 miRNAs, were found. A DAVID analysis of these differentially expressed genes revealed their critical roles in response to hormone stimulus, immune response. Cytoscape Network analysis of the functional genes found node mRNAs and that the regulatory network between the node mRNAs and miRNAs was established. A comparison of the sequencing data from the shorter gestation period (QS) and the normal gestation period (QL) indicated that these genes were responsible for the quicker and more sensitive reaction to the regulation of labour onset. This research not only detected the key factors that were involved in labour onset but also provided useful information for the research of gynaecological diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huanan Li
- Key Laboratory of Swine Genetics and Breeding of Agricultural Ministry and Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Bin Wu
- Key Laboratory of Swine Genetics and Breeding of Agricultural Ministry and Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Junnan Geng
- Key Laboratory of Swine Genetics and Breeding of Agricultural Ministry and Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiawei Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Swine Genetics and Breeding of Agricultural Ministry and Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Rong Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Swine Genetics and Breeding of Agricultural Ministry and Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Jin Chai
- Key Laboratory of Swine Genetics and Breeding of Agricultural Ministry and Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Fenge Li
- Key Laboratory of Swine Genetics and Breeding of Agricultural Ministry and Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, People's Republic of China
| | - Jian Peng
- 1] Department of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, People's Republic of China [2] The Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan 430070, China People's Republic of China
| | - Siwen Jiang
- 1] Key Laboratory of Swine Genetics and Breeding of Agricultural Ministry and Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, People's Republic of China [2] The Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan 430070, China People's Republic of China
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206
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Janssen AB, Tunster SJ, Savory N, Holmes A, Beasley J, Parveen SAR, Penketh RJA, John RM. Placental expression of imprinted genes varies with sampling site and mode of delivery. Placenta 2015; 36:790-5. [PMID: 26162698 PMCID: PMC4535278 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2015.06.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2015] [Revised: 06/25/2015] [Accepted: 06/26/2015] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
UNLABELLED Imprinted genes, which are monoallelically expressed by virtue of an epigenetic process initiated in the germline, are known to play key roles in regulating fetal growth and placental development. Numerous studies are investigating the expression of these imprinted genes in the human placenta in relation to common complications of pregnancy such as fetal growth restriction and preeclampsia. This study aimed to determine whether placental sampling protocols or other factors such as fetal sex, gestational age and mode of delivery may influence the expression of imprinted genes predicted to regulate placental signalling. METHODS Term placentas were collected from Caucasian women delivering at University Hospital of Wales or Royal Gwent Hospital within two hours of delivery. Expression of the imprinted genes PHLDA2, CDKN1C, PEG3 and PEG10 was assayed by quantitative real time PCR. Intraplacental gene expression was analysed (N = 5). Placental gene expression was compared between male (N = 11) and female (N = 11) infants, early term (N = 8) and late term (N = 10) deliveries and between labouring (N = 13) and non-labouring (N = 21) participants. RESULTS The paternally expressed imprinted genes PEG3 and PEG10 were resilient to differences in sampling site, fetal sex, term gestational age and mode of delivery. The maternally expressed imprinted gene CDKN1C was elevated over 2-fold (p < 0.001) in placenta from labouring deliveries compared with elective caesarean sections. In addition, the maternally expressed imprinted gene PHLDA2 was elevated by 1.8 fold (p = 0.01) in samples taken at the distal edge of the placenta compared to the cord insertion site. CONCLUSION These findings support the reinterpretation of existing data sets on these genes in relation to complications of pregnancy and further reinforce the importance of optimising and unifying placental collection protocols for future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- A B Janssen
- Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 3AX, UK
| | - S J Tunster
- Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 3AX, UK
| | - N Savory
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University Hospital Wales, Cardiff, Wales CF144XW, UK
| | - A Holmes
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University Hospital Wales, Cardiff, Wales CF144XW, UK
| | - J Beasley
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Royal Gwent Hospital, Newport, Wales NP202UB, UK
| | - S A R Parveen
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Royal Gwent Hospital, Newport, Wales NP202UB, UK
| | - R J A Penketh
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University Hospital Wales, Cardiff, Wales CF144XW, UK
| | - R M John
- Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 3AX, UK.
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207
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Metsalu T, Viltrop T, Tiirats A, Rajashekar B, Reimann E, Kõks S, Rull K, Milani L, Acharya G, Basnet P, Vilo J, Mägi R, Metspalu A, Peters M, Haller-Kikkatalo K, Salumets A. Using RNA sequencing for identifying gene imprinting and random monoallelic expression in human placenta. Epigenetics 2015; 9:1397-409. [PMID: 25437054 DOI: 10.4161/15592294.2014.970052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Given the possible critical importance of placental gene imprinting and random monoallelic expression on fetal and infant health, most of those genes must be identified, in order to understand the risks that the baby might meet during pregnancy and after birth. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to introduce a workflow and tools for analyzing imprinted and random monoallelic gene expression in human placenta, by applying whole-transcriptome (WT) RNA sequencing of placental tissue and genotyping of coding DNA variants in family trios. Ten family trios, each with a healthy spontaneous single-term pregnancy, were recruited. Total RNA was extracted for WT analysis, providing the full sequence information for the placental transcriptome. Parental and child blood DNA genotypes were analyzed by exome SNP genotyping microarrays, mapping the inheritance and estimating the abundance of parental expressed alleles. Imprinted genes showed consistent expression from either parental allele, as demonstrated by the SNP content of sequenced transcripts, while monoallelically expressed genes had random activity of parental alleles. We revealed 4 novel possible imprinted genes (LGALS8, LGALS14, PAPPA2 and SPTLC3) and confirmed the imprinting of 4 genes (AIM1, PEG10, RHOBTB3 and ZFAT-AS1) in human placenta. The major finding was the identification of 4 genes (ABP1, BCLAF1, IFI30 and ZFAT) with random allelic bias, expressing one of the parental alleles preferentially. The main functions of the imprinted and monoallelically expressed genes included: i) mediating cellular apoptosis and tissue development; ii) regulating inflammation and immune system; iii) facilitating metabolic processes; and iv) regulating cell cycle.
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Key Words
- ASE, allele-specific expression
- FDR, false discovery rate
- GEO, Gene Expression Omnibus
- IUGR, intrauterine growth restriction
- MAF, minor allele frequency
- MHC, major histocompatibility complex
- NK cells, natural killer cells
- RNA sequencing
- RNA-Seq, RNA-sequencing
- RPKM, reads per kilobase per million
- UCSC, University of California Santa Cruz
- WT, whole-transcriptome
- allele-specific expression
- imprinting
- placenta
- random monoallelic expression
- short read mapping
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Affiliation(s)
- Tauno Metsalu
- a Institute of Computer Science ; University of Tartu ; Tartu , Estonia
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208
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Eidem HR, Ackerman WE, McGary KL, Abbot P, Rokas A. Gestational tissue transcriptomics in term and preterm human pregnancies: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Med Genomics 2015; 8:27. [PMID: 26044726 PMCID: PMC4456776 DOI: 10.1186/s12920-015-0099-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2014] [Accepted: 05/12/2015] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Preterm birth (PTB), or birth before 37 weeks of gestation, is the leading cause of newborn death worldwide. PTB is a critical area of scientific study not only due to its worldwide toll on human lives and economies, but also due to our limited understanding of its pathogenesis and, therefore, its prevention. This systematic review and meta-analysis synthesizes the landscape of PTB transcriptomics research to further our understanding of the genes and pathways involved in PTB subtypes. METHODS We evaluated published genome-wide pregnancy studies across gestational tissues and pathologies, including those that focus on PTB, by performing a targeted PubMed MeSH search and systematically reviewing all relevant studies. RESULTS Our search yielded 2,361 studies on gestational tissues including placenta, decidua, myometrium, maternal blood, cervix, fetal membranes (chorion and amnion), umbilical cord, fetal blood, and basal plate. Selecting only those original research studies that measured transcription on a genome-wide scale and reported lists of expressed genetic elements identified 93 gene expression, 21 microRNA, and 20 methylation studies. Although 30 % of all PTB cases are due to medical indications, 76 % of the preterm studies focused on them. In contrast, only 18 % of the preterm studies focused on spontaneous onset of labor, which is responsible for 45 % of all PTB cases. Furthermore, only 23 of the 10,993 unique genetic elements reported to be transcriptionally active were recovered 10 or more times in these 134 studies. Meta-analysis of the 93 gene expression studies across 9 distinct gestational tissues and 29 clinical phenotypes showed limited overlap of genes identified as differentially expressed across studies. CONCLUSIONS Overall, profiles of differentially expressed genes were highly heterogeneous both between as well as within clinical subtypes and tissues as well as between studies of the same clinical subtype and tissue. These results suggest that large gaps still exist in the transcriptomic study of specific clinical subtypes as well in the generation of the transcriptional profile of well-studied clinical subtypes; understanding the complex landscape of prematurity will require large-scale, systematic genome-wide analyses of human gestational tissues on both understudied and well-studied subtypes alike.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haley R Eidem
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA.
| | - William E Ackerman
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
| | - Kriston L McGary
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA.
| | - Patrick Abbot
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA.
| | - Antonis Rokas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B #35-1634, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA.
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209
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Evaluating intra- and inter-individual variation in the human placental transcriptome. Genome Biol 2015; 16:54. [PMID: 25887593 PMCID: PMC4404591 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-015-0627-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2014] [Accepted: 03/10/2015] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Gene expression variation is a phenotypic trait of particular interest as it represents the initial link between genotype and other phenotypes. Analyzing how such variation apportions among and within groups allows for the evaluation of how genetic and environmental factors influence such traits. It also provides opportunities to identify genes and pathways that may have been influenced by non-neutral processes. Here we use a population genetics framework and next generation sequencing to evaluate how gene expression variation is apportioned among four human groups in a natural biological tissue, the placenta. RESULTS We estimate that on average, 33.2%, 58.9%, and 7.8% of the placental transcriptome is explained by variation within individuals, among individuals, and among human groups, respectively. Additionally, when technical and biological traits are included in models of gene expression they each account for roughly 2% of total gene expression variation. Notably, the variation that is significantly different among groups is enriched in biological pathways associated with immune response, cell signaling, and metabolism. Many biological traits demonstrate correlated changes in expression in numerous pathways of potential interest to clinicians and evolutionary biologists. Finally, we estimate that the majority of the human placental transcriptome exhibits expression profiles consistent with neutrality; the remainder are consistent with stabilizing selection, directional selection, or diversifying selection. CONCLUSIONS We apportion placental gene expression variation into individual, population, and biological trait factors and identify how each influence the transcriptome. Additionally, we advance methods to associate expression profiles with different forms of selection.
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210
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Amniotic epithelial cells have different in vitro proliferation capacity depending on their anatomical origin. BIOTECHNOL BIOPROC E 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s12257-014-0299-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
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211
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Tarrade A, Panchenko P, Junien C, Gabory A. Placental contribution to nutritional programming of health and diseases: epigenetics and sexual dimorphism. J Exp Biol 2015; 218:50-8. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.110320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 158] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The recent and rapid worldwide increase in non-communicable diseases challenges the assumption that genetic factors are the primary contributors to such diseases. A new concept of the ‘developmental origins of health and disease’ (DOHaD) is at stake and therefore requires a paradigm shift. Maternal obesity and malnutrition predispose offspring to develop metabolic syndrome, a vicious cycle leading to transmission to subsequent generation(s), with differences in response and susceptibility according to the sex of the individual. The placenta is a programming agent of adult health and disease. Adaptations of placental phenotype in response to maternal diet and metabolic status alter fetal nutrient supply. This implies important epigenetic changes that are, however, still poorly documented in DOHaD studies, particularly concerning overnutrition. The aim of this review is to discuss the emerging knowledge on the relationships between the effect of maternal nutrition or metabolic status on placental function and the risk of diseases later in life, with a specific focus on epigenetic mechanisms and sexual dimorphism. Explaining the sex-specific causal variables and how males versus females respond and adapt to environmental perturbations should help physicians and patients to anticipate disease susceptibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Tarrade
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, F-78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Polina Panchenko
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, F-78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Claudine Junien
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, F-78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France
- UVSQ, Université Versailles-Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France
| | - Anne Gabory
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, F-78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France
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212
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Verma PK, El-Harouni AA. Review of literature: genes related to postaxial polydactyly. Front Pediatr 2015; 3:8. [PMID: 25717468 PMCID: PMC4324078 DOI: 10.3389/fped.2015.00008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2014] [Accepted: 01/26/2015] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Postaxial polydactyly (PAP) is one of the commonest congenital malformations and usually is associated to several syndromes. There is no primary investigational strategy for PAP cases with single gene disorder in literature. PAP cases with single gene disorder can be classified according to common pathways and molecular basis. Molecular classification may help in diagnostic approach. MATERIALS AND METHODS All single gene disorders associated with PAP reported on PubMed and OMIM are analyzed and classified according to molecular basis. RESULTS Majority of genes related to cilia structure and functions are associated with PAP, so we classified them as ciliopathies and non-ciliopathies groups. Genes related to Shh-Gli3 pathway was the commonest group in non-ciliopathies. CONCLUSION Genes related to cilia are most commonly related to PAP due to their indirect relationship to Shh-Gli3 signaling pathway. Initially, PAP may be the only clinical finding with ciliopathies so those cases need follow up. Proper diagnosis is helpful for management and genetic counseling. Molecular approach may help to define pleiotropy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prashant Kumar Verma
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University , Jeddah , Saudi Arabia
| | - Ashraf A El-Harouni
- Department of Genetic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University , Jeddah , Saudi Arabia ; Department of Clinical Genetics, National Research Center , Cairo , Egypt
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Abstract
The field of genomics has expanded into subspecialties such as metagenomics over the course of the last decade and a half. The development of massively parallel sequencing capabilities has allowed for increasingly detailed study of the genome of the human microbiome, the microbial super organ that resides symbiotically within the mucosal tissues and integumentary system of the human host. The gut microbiome, and particularly the study of its origins in neonates, has become subtopics of great interest within the field of genomics. This brief review seeks to summarize recent literature regarding the origins and establishment of the neonatal gut microbiome, beginning in utero, and how it is affected by neonatal nutritional status (breastfed versus formula fed) and gestational age (term versus preterm). We also explore the role of dysbiosis, a perturbation within the fragile ecosystem of the microbiome, and its role in the origin of select pathologic states, specifically, obesity and necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in preterm infants. We discuss the evidence supporting enteral pre- and pro-biotic supplementation of commensal organisms such as Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus in the neonatal period, and their role in the prevention and amelioration of NEC in premature infants. Finally, we review directions to consider for further research to promote human health within this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily C Gritz
- Division of Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Yale Child Health Research Center, Yale University School of Medicine , New Haven, CT , USA
| | - Vineet Bhandari
- Division of Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Yale Child Health Research Center, Yale University School of Medicine , New Haven, CT , USA
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214
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Sedlmeier EM, Brunner S, Much D, Pagel P, Ulbrich SE, Meyer HH, Amann-Gassner U, Hauner H, Bader BL. Human placental transcriptome shows sexually dimorphic gene expression and responsiveness to maternal dietary n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid intervention during pregnancy. BMC Genomics 2014; 15:941. [PMID: 25348288 PMCID: PMC4232618 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2164-15-941] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2014] [Accepted: 10/09/2014] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Previously we have examined the effect of maternal dietary n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LCPUFA) supplementation during pregnancy on offspring fat mass. Considering the involvement of the placenta in fetal programming, we aimed to analyze the sex-specific gene expression in human term placenta and its response to the n-3 LCPUFA intervention, as well as their correlations to offspring adiposity. Results Placental gene expression was assessed in a control and n-3 LCPUFA intervention group by DNA microarrays, biological pathway analyses and RT-qPCR validation. Expression data were correlated with sex steroid hormone levels in placenta and cord plasma, and offspring anthropometric data. Transcriptome data revealed sexually dimorphic gene expression in control placentas per se, whereas in intervention placentas sex-specific expression changed, and more n-3 LCPUFA-regulated genes were found in female than male placentas. Sexually dimorphic gene expression and n-3 LCPUFA-responsive genes were enriched in the pathway for cell cycle and its associated modulator pathways. Significant mRNA expression changes for CDK6, PCNA, and TGFB1 were confirmed by RT-qPCR. CDK6 and PCNA mRNA levels correlated with offspring birth weight and birth weight percentiles. Significantly reduced placental estradiol-17β/testosterone ratio upon intervention found in female offspring correlated with mRNA levels for the 'Wnt signaling' genes DVL1 and LRP6. Conclusions Overall, human placentas show sexually dimorphic gene expression and responsiveness to maternal n-3 LCPUFA intervention during pregnancy with more pronounced effects in female placentas. The absence of correlations of analyzed placental gene expression with offspring adipose tissue growth in the first year is not mutually exclusive with programming effects, which may manifest later in life, or in other physiological processes. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2164-15-941) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Bernhard L Bader
- ZIEL-PhD Graduate School 'Epigenetics, Imprinting and Nutrition', Research Center for Nutrition and Food Sciences (ZIEL), Technische Universität München, Freising-Weihenstephan, Germany.
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215
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Aagaard K, Ma J, Antony KM, Ganu R, Petrosino J, Versalovic J. The placenta harbors a unique microbiome. Sci Transl Med 2014; 6:237ra65. [PMID: 24848255 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.3008599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1293] [Impact Index Per Article: 129.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Humans and their microbiomes have coevolved as a physiologic community composed of distinct body site niches with metabolic and antigenic diversity. The placental microbiome has not been robustly interrogated, despite recent demonstrations of intracellular bacteria with diverse metabolic and immune regulatory functions. A population-based cohort of placental specimens collected under sterile conditions from 320 subjects with extensive clinical data was established for comparative 16S ribosomal DNA-based and whole-genome shotgun (WGS) metagenomic studies. Identified taxa and their gene carriage patterns were compared to other human body site niches, including the oral, skin, airway (nasal), vaginal, and gut microbiomes from nonpregnant controls. We characterized a unique placental microbiome niche, composed of nonpathogenic commensal microbiota from the Firmicutes, Tenericutes, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Fusobacteria phyla. In aggregate, the placental microbiome profiles were most akin (Bray-Curtis dissimilarity <0.3) to the human oral microbiome. 16S-based operational taxonomic unit analyses revealed associations of the placental microbiome with a remote history of antenatal infection (permutational multivariate analysis of variance, P = 0.006), such as urinary tract infection in the first trimester, as well as with preterm birth <37 weeks (P = 0.001).
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Affiliation(s)
- Kjersti Aagaard
- Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA. Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Bioinformatics Research Laboratory, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA. Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| | - Jun Ma
- Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA. Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Bioinformatics Research Laboratory, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Kathleen M Antony
- Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Radhika Ganu
- Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Joseph Petrosino
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Virology, Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - James Versalovic
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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216
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Chu T, Bunce K, Shaw P, Shridhar V, Althouse A, Hubel C, Peters D. Comprehensive analysis of preeclampsia-associated DNA methylation in the placenta. PLoS One 2014; 9:e107318. [PMID: 25247495 PMCID: PMC4172433 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0107318] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2014] [Accepted: 08/09/2014] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND A small number of recent reports have suggested that altered placental DNA methylation may be associated with early onset preeclampsia. It is important that further studies be undertaken to confirm and develop these findings. We therefore undertook a systematic analysis of DNA methylation patterns in placental tissue from 24 women with preeclampsia and 24 with uncomplicated pregnancy outcome. METHODS We analyzed the DNA methylation status of approximately 27,000 CpG sites in placental tissues in a massively parallel fashion using an oligonucleotide microarray. Follow up analysis of DNA methylation at specific CpG loci was performed using the Epityper MassArray approach and high-throughput bisulfite sequencing. RESULTS Preeclampsia-specific DNA methylation changes were identified in placental tissue samples irrespective of gestational age of delivery. In addition, we identified a group of CpG sites within specific gene sequences that were only altered in early onset-preeclampsia (EOPET) although these DNA methylation changes did not correlate with altered mRNA transcription. We found evidence that fetal gender influences DNA methylation at autosomal loci but could find no clear association between DNA methylation and gestational age. CONCLUSION Preeclampsia is associated with altered placental DNA methylation. Fetal gender should be carefully considered during the design of future studies in which placental DNA is analyzed at the level of DNA methylation. Further large-scale analyses of preeclampsia-associated DNA methylation are necessary.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianjiao Chu
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Kimberly Bunce
- Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Patricia Shaw
- Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Varsha Shridhar
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Andrew Althouse
- Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Carl Hubel
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - David Peters
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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217
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Mele J, Muralimanoharan S, Maloyan A, Myatt L. Impaired mitochondrial function in human placenta with increased maternal adiposity. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 2014; 307:E419-25. [PMID: 25028397 PMCID: PMC4154072 DOI: 10.1152/ajpendo.00025.2014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 105] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2014] [Accepted: 07/11/2014] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
The placenta plays a key role in regulation of fetal growth and development and in mediating in utero developmental programming. Obesity, which is associated with chronic inflammation and mitochondrial dysfunction in many tissues, exerts a programming effect in pregnancy. We determined the effect of increasing maternal adiposity and of fetal sex on placental ATP generation, mitochondrial biogenesis, expression of electron transport chain subunits, and mitochondrial function in isolated trophoblasts. Placental tissue was collected from women with prepregnancy BMI ranging from 18.5 to 45 following C-section at term with no labor. Increasing maternal adiposity was associated with excessive production of reactive oxygen species and a significant reduction in placental ATP levels in placentae with male and female fetuses. To explore the potential mechanism of placental mitochondrial dysfunction, levels of transcription factors regulating the expression of genes involved in electron transport and mitochondrial biogenesis were measured. Our in vitro studies showed significant reduction in mitochondrial respiration in cultured primary trophoblasts with increasing maternal obesity along with an abnormal metabolic flexibility of these cells. This reduction in placental mitochondrial respiration in pregnancies complicated by maternal obesity could compromise placental function and potentially underlie the increased susceptibility of these pregnancies to fetal demise in late gestation and to developmental programming.
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Affiliation(s)
- James Mele
- Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Research, Department of Ob/Gyn, University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas
| | - Sribalasubashini Muralimanoharan
- Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Research, Department of Ob/Gyn, University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas
| | - Alina Maloyan
- Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Research, Department of Ob/Gyn, University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas
| | - Leslie Myatt
- Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Research, Department of Ob/Gyn, University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas
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218
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Enninga EAL, Nevala WK, Creedon DJ, Markovic SN, Holtan SG. Fetal sex-based differences in maternal hormones, angiogenic factors, and immune mediators during pregnancy and the postpartum period. Am J Reprod Immunol 2014; 73:251-62. [PMID: 25091957 PMCID: PMC4317383 DOI: 10.1111/aji.12303] [Citation(s) in RCA: 112] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2014] [Accepted: 07/13/2014] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Problem Several pregnancy complications have disparities based on the sex of the fetus. It is unknown whether the sex of the fetus differentially alters the maternal immune milieu, potentially contributing to the observed differences. Method of study Using maternal plasma collected during 38 uncomplicated pregnancies (19 males, 19 females), we compared levels of cytokines, sex hormones, and angiogenic factors throughout gestation and postpartum. Results Male fetal sex was associated with higher levels of proinflammatory cytokines (G-CSF, IL-12p70, IL-21, and IL-33) and angiogenic factors (PlGF and VEGF-A) compared with female fetal sex at multiple timepoints. Female fetal sex was associated with higher levels of regulatory cytokines (IL-5, IL-9, IL-17, and IL-25). IL-27 increased throughout pregnancy regardless of fetal sex. There was no fetal sex-based difference in analyte concentrations at the postpartum measurement. Conclusion Women carrying a male fetus exhibit a more proinflammatory/proangiogenic immune milieu than women carrying a female fetus.
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219
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Buckberry S, Bianco-Miotto T, Bent SJ, Dekker GA, Roberts CT. Integrative transcriptome meta-analysis reveals widespread sex-biased gene expression at the human fetal-maternal interface. Mol Hum Reprod 2014; 20:810-9. [PMID: 24867328 PMCID: PMC4106635 DOI: 10.1093/molehr/gau035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 121] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2014] [Revised: 04/23/2014] [Accepted: 05/01/2014] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
As males and females share highly similar genomes, the regulation of many sexually dimorphic traits is constrained to occur through sex-biased gene regulation. There is strong evidence that human males and females differ in terms of growth and development in utero and that these divergent growth strategies appear to place males at increased risk when in sub-optimal conditions. Since the placenta is the interface of maternal-fetal exchange throughout pregnancy, these developmental differences are most likely orchestrated by differential placental function. To date, progress in this field has been hampered by a lack of genome-wide information on sex differences in placental gene expression. Therefore, our motivation in this study was to characterize sex-biased gene expression in the human placenta. We obtained gene expression data for >300 non-pathological placenta samples from 11 microarray datasets and applied mapping-based array probe re-annotation and inverse-variance meta-analysis methods which showed that >140 genes (false discovery rate (FDR) <0.05) are differentially expressed between male and female placentae. A majority of these genes (>60%) are autosomal, many of which are involved in high-level regulatory processes such as gene transcription, cell growth and proliferation and hormonal function. Of particular interest, we detected higher female expression from all seven genes in the LHB-CGB cluster, which includes genes involved in placental development, the maintenance of pregnancy and maternal immune tolerance of the conceptus. These results demonstrate that sex-biased gene expression in the normal human placenta occurs across the genome and includes genes that are central to growth, development and the maintenance of pregnancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sam Buckberry
- The Robinson Research Institute, School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide 5005, Australia
| | - Tina Bianco-Miotto
- The Robinson Research Institute, School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide 5005, Australia School of Agriculture Food & Wine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide 5005, Australia
| | - Stephen J Bent
- The Robinson Research Institute, School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide 5005, Australia
| | - Gustaaf A Dekker
- The Robinson Research Institute, School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide 5005, Australia Lyell McEwin Hospital, Elizabeth Vale, SA 5112, Australia
| | - Claire T Roberts
- The Robinson Research Institute, School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide 5005, Australia
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220
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Reynolds SA, Roberts JM, Bodnar LM, Haggerty CL, Youk AO, Catov JM. Fetal sex and race modify the predictors of fetal growth. Matern Child Health J 2014; 19:798-810. [PMID: 25030701 DOI: 10.1007/s10995-014-1571-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
The objective of this study is unknown if fetal sex and race modify the impact of maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI), and smoking on fetal growth. The authors studied markers of fetal growth in singleton offspring of 8,801 primiparous, normotensive women, enrolled in the Collaborative Perinatal Project. The authors tested for departures from additivity between sex/race and each predictor. The head-to-chest circumference ratio (HCC) decreased more, while birthweight and ponderal index (PI) increased more for each 1 kg/m(2) increase in pre-pregnancy BMI among term females versus males (P = 0.07, P < 0.01 and P = 0.08, interaction respectively). For term offspring of White compared with Black women, smoking independent of "dose" was associated with larger reductions in growth (165 g vs. 68 g reduction in birthweight, P < 0.01, interaction), greater reduction in fetal placental ratio (P < 0.01, interaction), PI (P < 0.01, interaction), and greater increase in HCC (P = 0.02), respectively. The association of BMI and smoking with fetal size appeared to be reversed in term versus preterm infants. Our study provides evidence that the associations of pre-pregnancy BMI and smoking are not constant across sex and race. This finding may be relevant to sex and race differences in neonatal and long term health outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone A Reynolds
- Department of Epidemiology, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, 130 DeSoto Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15261, USA,
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221
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Bronson SL, Bale TL. Prenatal stress-induced increases in placental inflammation and offspring hyperactivity are male-specific and ameliorated by maternal antiinflammatory treatment. Endocrinology 2014; 155:2635-46. [PMID: 24797632 PMCID: PMC4060181 DOI: 10.1210/en.2014-1040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 209] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Adverse experiences during gestation such as maternal stress and infection are known risk factors for neurodevelopmental disorders, including schizophrenia, autism, and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. The mechanisms by which these distinct exposures may confer similar psychiatric vulnerability remain unclear, although likely involve pathways common to both stress and immune responses at the maternal-fetal interface. We hypothesized that maternal stress-induced activation of immune pathways within the placenta, the sex-specific maternal-fetal intermediary, may contribute to prenatal stress programming effects on the offspring. Therefore, we assessed for markers indicative of stress-induced placental inflammation, and examined the ability of maternal nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID) treatment to ameliorate placental effects and thereby rescue the stress-dysregulation phenotype observed in our established mouse model of early prenatal stress (EPS). As expected, placental gene expression analyses revealed increased levels of immune response genes, including the proinflammatory cytokines IL-6 and IL-1β, specifically in male placentas. NSAID treatment partially ameliorated these EPS effects. Similarly, in adult offspring, males displayed stress-induced locomotor hyperactivity, a hallmark of dopaminergic dysregulation, which was ameliorated by maternal NSAID treatment. Fitting with these outcomes and supportive of dopamine pathway involvement, expression of dopamine D1 and D2 receptors was altered by EPS in males. These studies support an important interaction between maternal stress and a proinflammatory state in the long-term programming effects of maternal stress.
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MESH Headings
- Animals
- Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal/immunology
- Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal/pharmacology
- Blotting, Western
- Brain/drug effects
- Brain/immunology
- Brain/metabolism
- Female
- Gene Expression/drug effects
- Gene Expression/immunology
- Humans
- Interleukin-1beta/genetics
- Interleukin-1beta/immunology
- Interleukin-6/genetics
- Interleukin-6/immunology
- Male
- Maze Learning/drug effects
- Mice
- Mice, Inbred C57BL
- Motor Activity/drug effects
- Motor Activity/immunology
- Placenta/drug effects
- Placenta/immunology
- Placenta/metabolism
- Pregnancy
- Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects/immunology
- Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects/psychology
- Receptors, Dopamine D1/genetics
- Receptors, Dopamine D1/immunology
- Receptors, Dopamine D2/genetics
- Receptors, Dopamine D2/immunology
- Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
- Sex Factors
- Stress, Psychological/immunology
- Stress, Psychological/psychology
- Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase/immunology
- Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase/metabolism
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie L Bronson
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
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222
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Placenta-derived gp96 as a multivalent prophylactic cancer vaccine. Sci Rep 2014; 3:1947. [PMID: 23739295 PMCID: PMC3674428 DOI: 10.1038/srep01947] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2013] [Accepted: 05/22/2013] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
A major challenge for designing prophylactic cancer vaccines is to define immunogenic and safe cancer antigens. Given the striking similarity of antigen expression patterns between cancer and embryonic tissues, we defined a prototype strategy of using placenta-derived heat shock protein gp96, which induces prophylactic anti-tumor T cell responses. Immunization with placental gp96 provided partial protection and long-term (at least 3 months) anti-tumor immunity against growth of transplantable melanoma or breast tumors in mice, elicited total protection against 7, 12-dimethylbenz(a)-anthracene (DMBA)-induced mammary tumors in rats, and significantly reduced the occurrence and growth of autochthonous breast tumors in HER2 transgenic mice. Placental gp96 activated HER2- and MUC1-specific T cell responses through binding to tumor-associated antigens. Our results reveal the novel immunogenicity of placental gp96 and its potential use as a multivalent cancer vaccine.
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223
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King S, Dancause K, Turcotte-Tremblay AM, Veru F, Laplante DP. Using natural disasters to study the effects of prenatal maternal stress on child health and development. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 96:273-88. [PMID: 24203917 DOI: 10.1002/bdrc.21026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 152] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2012] [Accepted: 11/25/2012] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Research on the developmental origins of health and disease highlights the plasticity of the human fetus to a host of potential teratogens. Experimental research on laboratory animals has demonstrated a variety of physical and behavioral effects among offspring exposed to prenatal maternal stress (PNMS). However, these studies cannot elucidate the relative effects of the objective stress exposure and the subjective distress in a way that would parallel the stress experience in humans. PNMS research with humans is also limited because there are ethical challenges to designing studies that involve the random assignment of pregnant women to varying levels of independent stressors. Natural disasters present opportunities for natural experiments of the effects of pregnant women's exposure to stress on child development. In this review, we present an overview of the human and animal research on PNMS, and highlight the results of Project Ice Storm which has been following the cognitive, behavioral, motor and physical development of children exposed in utero to the January 1998 Quebec Ice Storm. We have found that both objective degree of exposure to the storm and the mothers' subjective distress have strong and persistent effects on child development, and that these effects are often moderated by the timing of the ice storm in pregnancy and by the child's sex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suzanne King
- Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Douglas Hospital Research Centre, Psychosocial Research Division, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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224
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Myers JE, Thomas G, Tuytten R, Van Herrewege Y, Djiokep RO, Roberts CT, Kenny LC, Simpson NAB, North RA, Baker PN. Mid-trimester maternal ADAM12 levels differ according to fetal gender in pregnancies complicated by preeclampsia. Reprod Sci 2014; 22:235-41. [PMID: 24899472 DOI: 10.1177/1933719114537713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
An overrepresentation of adverse pregnancy outcomes has been observed in pregnancies associated with a male fetus. We investigated the association between fetal gender and candidate biomarkers for preeclampsia. Proteins were quantified in samples taken at 20 weeks from women recruited to the SCreening fOr Pregnancy Endpoints (SCOPE) study (preeclampsia n = 150; no preeclampsia n = 450). In contrast to placental growth factor, soluble endoglin, and insulin-like growth factor acid labile subunit, levels of metallopeptidase domain 12 (ADAM12) at 20 weeks were dependent on fetal gender in pregnancies complicated by preeclampsia, for male (n = 73) fetuses the multiples of the median (MoM; interquartile range [IQR] 1.1-1.5) was 1.3, whereas for female fetuses (n = 75) MoM was 1.1 (1.0-1.3); P < .01. Prediction of preeclampsia using ADAM12 levels was improved for pregnancies associated with a male fetus (area under receiver-operator curve [AUC] 0.73 [95% confidence interval [CI] 0.67-0.80]) than that of a female fetus (AUC 0.62 [0.55-0.70]); P = .03. The data presented here fit a contemporary hypothesis that there is a difference between the genders in response to an adverse maternal environment and suggest that an alteration in ADAM12 may reflect an altered placental response in pregnancies subsequently complicated by preeclampsia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jenny E Myers
- Maternal & Fetal Heath Research Centre, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Central Manchester NHS Trust, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | | | | | | | | | - Claire T Roberts
- Discipline of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia
| | - Louise C Kenny
- The Irish Centre for Fetal and Neonatal Translational Research (INFANT), University College Cork, Ireland
| | - Nigel A B Simpson
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
| | - Robyn A North
- Women's Health Academic Centre, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Philip N Baker
- Maternal & Fetal Heath Research Centre, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, University of Manchester, Central Manchester NHS Trust, Manchester, United Kingdom Gravida: National Centre for Growth and Development, Liggins Institute, University of Auckland, New Zealand
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225
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Turcotte-Tremblay AM, Lim R, Laplante DP, Kobzik L, Brunet A, King S. Prenatal maternal stress predicts childhood asthma in girls: project ice storm. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2014; 2014:201717. [PMID: 24895550 PMCID: PMC4034394 DOI: 10.1155/2014/201717] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2014] [Revised: 04/11/2014] [Accepted: 04/11/2014] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Little is known about how prenatal maternal stress (PNMS) influences risks of asthma in humans. In this small study, we sought to determine whether disaster-related PNMS would predict asthma risk in children. In June 1998, we assessed severity of objective hardship and subjective distress in women pregnant during the January 1998 Quebec Ice Storm. Lifetime asthma symptoms, diagnoses, and corticosteroid utilization were assessed when the children were 12 years old (N = 68). No effects of objective hardship or timing of the exposure were found. However, we found that, in girls only, higher levels of prenatal maternal subjective distress predicted greater lifetime risk of wheezing (OR = 1.11; 90% CI = 1.01-1.23), doctor-diagnosed asthma (OR = 1.09; 90% CI = 1.00-1.19), and lifetime utilization of corticosteroids (OR = 1.12; 90% CI = 1.01-1.25). Other perinatal and current maternal life events were also associated with asthma outcomes. Findings suggest that stress during pregnancy opens a window for fetal programming of immune functioning. A sex-based approach may be useful to examine how prenatal and postnatal environments combine to program the immune system. This small study needs to be replicated with a larger, more representative sample.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne-Marie Turcotte-Tremblay
- University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre, Montreal, QC, Canada H2X 0A9
- University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada H3N 1X9
- Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC, Canada H4H 1R3
| | - Robert Lim
- Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | | | - Lester Kobzik
- Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Alain Brunet
- Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC, Canada H4H 1R3
- McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 1A1
| | - Suzanne King
- Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC, Canada H4H 1R3
- McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 1A1
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226
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Gabory A, Vigé A, Ferry L, Attig L, Jais JP, Jouneau L, Junien C. Male and Female Placentas Have Divergent Transcriptomic and Epigenomic Responses to Maternal Diets: Not Just Hormones. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-02591-9_6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/17/2023]
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227
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Trifonova EA, Gabidulina TV, Ershov NI, Serebrova VN, Vorozhishcheva AY, Stepanov VA. Analysis of the placental tissue transcriptome of normal and preeclampsia complicated pregnancies. Acta Naturae 2014; 6:71-83. [PMID: 25093114 PMCID: PMC4115229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Preeclampsia is one of the most severe gestational complications which is one of the leading causes of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. A growth in the incidence of severe and combined forms of the pathology has been observed in recent years. According to modern concepts, inadequate cytotrophoblast invasion into the spiral arteries of the uterus and development of the ischemia-reperfusion syndrome in the placental tissue play the leading role in the development of preeclampsia, which is characterized by multipleorgan failure. In this regard, our work was aimed at studying the patterns of placental tissue transcriptome that are specific to females with PE and with physiological pregnancy, as well as identifying the potential promising biomarkers and molecular mechanisms of this pathology. We have identified 63 genes whose expression proved to differ significantly in the placental tissue of females with PE and with physiological pregnancy. A cluster of differentially expressed genes (DEG) whose expression level is increased in patients with preeclampsia includes not only the known candidate genes that have been identified in many other genome-wide studies (e.g., LEP, BHLHB2, SIGLEC6, RDH13, BCL6), but also new genes (ANKRD37, SYDE1, CYBA, ITGB2, etc.), which can be considered as new biological markers of preeclampsia and are of further interest. The results of a functional annotation of DEG show that the development of preeclampsia may be related to a stress response, immune processes, the regulation of cell-cell interactions, intracellular signaling cascades, etc. In addition, the features of the differential gene expression depending on preeclampsia severity were revealed. We have found evidence of the important role of the molecular mechanisms responsible for the failure of immunological tolerance and initiation of the pro-inflammatory cascade in the development of severe preeclampsia. The results obtained elaborate the concept of the pathophysiology of preeclampsia and contain the information necessary to work out measures for targeted therapy of this disease. ;
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Affiliation(s)
- E. A. Trifonova
- Research Institute of Medical Genetics, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Nab. Ushayky 10, 634050, Tomsk, Russia
- Tomsk State University, Lenina Avenue, 36, 634050, Tomsk, Russia
| | - T. V. Gabidulina
- Siberian State Medical University, Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Moskovsky Trakt, 2, 634050, Tomsk, Russia
| | - N. I. Ershov
- Institute of Cytology and Genetics, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, Prosp. Lavrentieva 10, 630090, Novosibirsk, Russia
| | - V. N. Serebrova
- Research Institute of Medical Genetics, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Nab. Ushayky 10, 634050, Tomsk, Russia
| | | | - V. A. Stepanov
- Research Institute of Medical Genetics, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Nab. Ushayky 10, 634050, Tomsk, Russia
- Tomsk State University, Lenina Avenue, 36, 634050, Tomsk, Russia
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Prophylactic cancer vaccine, from concept to reality? CHINESE SCIENCE BULLETIN-CHINESE 2014. [DOI: 10.1007/s11434-014-0176-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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229
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Larkin J, Chen B, Shi XH, Mishima T, Kokame K, Barak Y, Sadovsky Y. NDRG1 deficiency attenuates fetal growth and the intrauterine response to hypoxic injury. Endocrinology 2014; 155:1099-106. [PMID: 24424031 PMCID: PMC3929742 DOI: 10.1210/en.2013-1425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Intrauterine mammalian development depends on the preservation of placental function. The expression of the protein N-myc downstream-regulated gene 1 (NDRG1) is increased in placentas of human pregnancies affected by fetal growth restriction and in hypoxic primary human trophoblasts, where NDRG1 attenuates cell injury. We sought to assess the function of placental NDRG1 in vivo and tested the hypothesis that NDRG1 deficiency in the mouse embryo impairs placental function and consequently intrauterine growth. We found that Ndrg1 knock-out embryos were growth restricted in comparison to wild-type or heterozygous counterparts. Furthermore, hypoxia reduced the survival of female, but not male, knock-out embryos. Ndrg1 deletion caused significant alterations in placental gene expression, with a marked reduction in transcription of several lipoproteins in the placental labyrinth. These transcriptional changes were associated with reduced fetal:maternal serum cholesterol ratio exclusively in hypoxic female embryos. Collectively, our findings indicate that NDRG1 promotes fetal growth and regulates the metabolic response to intrauterine hypoxic injury in a sexually dichotomous manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob Larkin
- Magee-Womens Research Institute (J.L., X.H.S., T.M., Y.B., Y.S.), Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology (B.C.), Washington University, St Louis, Missouri 63110; Department of Molecular Pathogenesis (K.K.), National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center, Osaka, Japan 565-8565; and Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics (Y.B., Y.S.), University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213
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Wick HC, Drabkin H, Ngu H, Sackman M, Fournier C, Haggett J, Blake JA, Bianchi DW, Slonim DK. DFLAT: functional annotation for human development. BMC Bioinformatics 2014; 15:45. [PMID: 24507166 PMCID: PMC3928322 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2105-15-45] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2013] [Accepted: 01/28/2014] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Recent increases in genomic studies of the developing human fetus and neonate have led to a need for widespread characterization of the functional roles of genes at different developmental stages. The Gene Ontology (GO), a valuable and widely-used resource for characterizing gene function, offers perhaps the most suitable functional annotation system for this purpose. However, due in part to the difficulty of studying molecular genetic effects in humans, even the current collection of comprehensive GO annotations for human genes and gene products often lacks adequate developmental context for scientists wishing to study gene function in the human fetus. Description The Developmental FunctionaL Annotation at Tufts (DFLAT) project aims to improve the quality of analyses of fetal gene expression and regulation by curating human fetal gene functions using both manual and semi-automated GO procedures. Eligible annotations are then contributed to the GO database and included in GO releases of human data. DFLAT has produced a considerable body of functional annotation that we demonstrate provides valuable information about developmental genomics. A collection of gene sets (genes implicated in the same function or biological process), made by combining existing GO annotations with the 13,344 new DFLAT annotations, is available for use in novel analyses. Gene set analyses of expression in several data sets, including amniotic fluid RNA from fetuses with trisomies 21 and 18, umbilical cord blood, and blood from newborns with bronchopulmonary dysplasia, were conducted both with and without the DFLAT annotation. Conclusions Functional analysis of expression data using the DFLAT annotation increases the number of implicated gene sets, reflecting the DFLAT’s improved representation of current knowledge. Blinded literature review supports the validity of newly significant findings obtained with the DFLAT annotations. Newly implicated significant gene sets also suggest specific hypotheses for future research. Overall, the DFLAT project contributes new functional annotation and gene sets likely to enhance our ability to interpret genomic studies of human fetal and neonatal development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heather C Wick
- Department of Computer Science, Tufts University, 155 College Ave, Medford, MA 02155, USA.
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231
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Maternal factors associated with fetal growth and birthweight are independent determinants of placental weight and exhibit differential effects by fetal sex. PLoS One 2014; 9:e87303. [PMID: 24516548 PMCID: PMC3916298 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0087303] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2013] [Accepted: 12/24/2013] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction Maternal nutritional and metabolic factors influence the developmental environment of the fetus. Virtually any nutritional factor in the maternal blood has to pass the placental membranes to reach the fetal blood. Placental weight is a commonly used measure to summarize placental growth and function. Placental weight is an independent determinant of fetal growth and birthweight and modifies the associations between maternal metabolic factors and fetal growth. We hypothesized that maternal factors known to be related to fetal growth, newborn size and body composition are determinants of placental weight and that effects of maternal metabolic factors on placental weight differ between the genders. Methods The STORK study is a prospective longitudinal study including 1031 healthy pregnant women of Scandinavian heritage with singleton pregnancies. Maternal determinants (parity, body mass index, gestational weight gain and fasting plasma glucose) of placental weight were explored by linear regression models, stratified by fetal sex. Results Parity, maternal BMI, gestational weight gain and fasting glucose had positive effects on placental weight. There was a sex specific effect in these associations. Fasting glucose was significantly associated with placental weight in females but not in males. Conclusion Maternal factors known to influence fetal growth, birthweight and neonatal body composition are determinants of placental weight. The effect of maternal factors on placental weight is influenced by sex as illustrated in the relation between maternal glucose and placental weight.
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Lesseur C, Armstrong DA, Murphy MA, Appleton AA, Koestler DC, Paquette AG, Lester BM, Marsit CJ. Sex-specific associations between placental leptin promoter DNA methylation and infant neurobehavior. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2014; 40:1-9. [PMID: 24485470 PMCID: PMC3912462 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.10.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2013] [Revised: 09/27/2013] [Accepted: 10/21/2013] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Leptin (LEP) is a hormone central for energy homeostasis and has been implicated in neurodevelopment. This adipokine is produced by the placenta and is epigenetically regulated by promoter DNA methylation. Recent evidence has suggested a role for LEP in behavioral development. In this study, we investigated associations between profiles of human newborn neurobehavior and placental LEP DNA methylation. METHODS We determined LEP promoter methylation in 444 placental samples from healthy term infants and measured LEP gene expression in a random subset of these samples. Infant neurobehavior was assessed with the NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scales (NNNS) and we examined the relationship between LEP promoter methylation and profiles of infant neurobehavior derived from these scores generated using a hierarchical model-based clustering method. RESULTS LEP methylation is negatively correlated with gene expression only in placentas from male infants (r=-0.6, P=0.006). A 10% increase in LEP DNA methylation was associated with membership in a profile of infant neurobehavior marked by increased lethargy and hypotonicity (OR=1.9; 95% CI: 1.07-3.4), and consistently with reduced risk of membership in a profile characterized by decreased lethargy and hypotonicity (OR=0.54; 95% CI: 0.3-0.94) only in male infants (n=223). No statistically significant associations were observed amongst female infants. DISCUSSION These results suggest that increased placental LEP DNA methylation, related to reduced expression, may play a role in human newborn neurodevelopment, particularly in reactivity to various stimuli, but that these effects may be sexually dimorphic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Corina Lesseur
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, 7650 Remsen, Hanover, NH 03755, USA.
| | - David A. Armstrong
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, 7650 Remsen, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Megan A. Murphy
- Section of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Department of Community and Family Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and Norris Cotton Cancer Center, 1 Medical Center Drive, 7927 Rubin Building, Lebanon, NH 03756, USA
| | - Allison A. Appleton
- Section of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Department of Community and Family Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and Norris Cotton Cancer Center, 1 Medical Center Drive, 7927 Rubin Building, Lebanon, NH 03756, USA
| | - Devin C. Koestler
- Section of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Department of Community and Family Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and Norris Cotton Cancer Center, 1 Medical Center Drive, 7927 Rubin Building, Lebanon, NH 03756, USA
| | - Alison G. Paquette
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, 7650 Remsen, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Barry M. Lester
- The Brown Center for the Study of Children at Risk, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Women and Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, Providence, RI 02903, USA
| | - Carmen J. Marsit
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, 7650 Remsen, Hanover, NH 03755, USA,Section of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Department of Community and Family Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and Norris Cotton Cancer Center, 1 Medical Center Drive, 7927 Rubin Building, Lebanon, NH 03756, USA,Corresponding author at: Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, 7650 Remsen, Hanover, NH 03755, USA. Tel.: +1 603 6501825; fax: +1 603 6501129. (C. Lesseur), (C.J. Marsit)
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233
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Hogg K, Price EM, Robinson WP. Improved reporting of DNA methylation data derived from studies of the human placenta. Epigenetics 2014; 9:333-7. [PMID: 24394602 DOI: 10.4161/epi.27648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Epigenetic variation is increasingly hypothesized as a mechanism underlying the effect of the in utero environment on long-term postnatal health; however, there is currently little clear data to support this in humans. A number of biological and technical factors provide challenges for the design of clinical epigenetic studies: from the type of cells or tissues that are available to the large range of predicted confounders that may impact findings. The human placenta, in addition to other neonatal tissues and whole blood, is commonly sampled for the study of epigenetic modifications. However there is little conformity for the most appropriate methods for study design, data analysis, and importantly, data interpretation. Here we present general recommendations for the reporting of DNA methylation in biological samples, with specific focus on the placenta. We outline key guidelines for: (1) placental sampling, (2) data analysis and presentation, and (3) interpretation of DNA methylation data. We emphasize the need to consider methodological noise, increase statistical power and to ensure appropriate adjustment for biological covariates. Finally, we highlight that epigenetic changes may be non-pathological and not necessarily translate into disease-associated changes. Improved reporting of DNA methylation data will be critical to identify epigenetic-based effects and to better understand the full phenotypic impact of these widely-reported epigenomic changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kirsten Hogg
- Department of Medical Genetics; University of British Columbia; Vancouver, BC Canada; Child & Family Research Institute; Vancouver, BC Canada
| | - E Magda Price
- Department of Medical Genetics; University of British Columbia; Vancouver, BC Canada; Child & Family Research Institute; Vancouver, BC Canada; Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology; University of British Columbia; Vancouver, BC Canada
| | - Wendy P Robinson
- Department of Medical Genetics; University of British Columbia; Vancouver, BC Canada; Child & Family Research Institute; Vancouver, BC Canada
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234
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Myatt L, Muralimanoharan S, Maloyan A. Effect of preeclampsia on placental function: influence of sexual dimorphism, microRNA's and mitochondria. ADVANCES IN EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY 2014; 814:133-46. [PMID: 25015807 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-1031-1_12] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
In pregnancy fetal growth and development occur in a sexually dimorphic manner. Male and female fetuses respond differently to the intrauterine environment with males disproportionately suffering from perinatal morbidity and mortality. We have demonstrated placental dysfunction and sexually dimorphic responses in pregnancies complicated by severe preeclampsia. Production of cytokines and apoptosis in the male placenta is heightened relative to that of the female placenta. We also find increased expression and stabilization and a sexual dimorphism in expression of the transcription factor HIF-1α, but a defect in binding to the hypoxia response element with corresponding reduced expression of HIF-1α target genes including VEGF and Glut-1. HIF-1α is involved in crosstalk with the redox sensitive transcription factor NFκB in regulation by cytokines, reactive oxygen species and expression of inflammatory genes. We find increased placental expression and DNA binding of NFκB and a sexually dimorphic response suggesting a role for NFκB in placental dysfunction with preeclampsia. Placental mitochondrial complex III activity and complex I and IV expression are reduced and alterations in mitochondrial morphology are found in preeclampsia and are linked to the hypoxamir miR-210. We propose that with severe PE placental HIF-1α is stabilized by excessive ROS, inflammation and relative hypoxia. This increases the expression of miR-210 in the placenta causing repression of mitochondria-associated target genes, potentially leading to mitochondrial and placental dysfunction. This placental dysfunction may lead to a fetal programming effect that results in disease in later life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leslie Myatt
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Research, University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, 78229-3900, USA,
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235
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Saben J, Zhong Y, McKelvey S, Dajani NK, Andres A, Badger TM, Gomez-Acevedo H, Shankar K. A comprehensive analysis of the human placenta transcriptome. Placenta 2013; 35:125-31. [PMID: 24333048 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2013.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2013] [Revised: 10/25/2013] [Accepted: 11/13/2013] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
As the conduit for nutrients and growth signals, the placenta is critical to establishing an environment sufficient for fetal growth and development. To better understand the mechanisms regulating placental development and gene expression, we characterized the transcriptome of term placenta from 20 healthy women with uncomplicated pregnancies using RNA-seq. To identify genes that were highly expressed and unique to the placenta we compared placental RNA-seq data to data from 7 other tissues (adipose, breast, hear, kidney, liver, lung, and smooth muscle) and identified several genes novel to placental biology (QSOX1, DLG5, and SEMA7A). Semi-quantitative RT-PCR confirmed the RNA-seq results and immunohistochemistry indicated these proteins were highly expressed in the placental syncytium. Additionally, we mined our RNA-seq data to map the relative expression of key developmental gene families (Fox, Sox, Gata, Tead, and Wnt) within the placenta. We identified FOXO4, GATA3, and WNT7A to be amongst the highest expressed members of these families. Overall, these findings provide a new reference for understanding of placental transcriptome and can aid in the identification of novel pathways regulating placenta physiology that may be dysregulated in placental disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Saben
- Arkansas Children's Nutrition Center, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA
| | - Y Zhong
- Arkansas Children's Nutrition Center, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA
| | - S McKelvey
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA
| | - N K Dajani
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA
| | - A Andres
- Arkansas Children's Nutrition Center, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA
| | - T M Badger
- Arkansas Children's Nutrition Center, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA
| | - H Gomez-Acevedo
- Arkansas Children's Nutrition Center, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA
| | - K Shankar
- Arkansas Children's Nutrition Center, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.
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Abstract
Biobanks provide an important repository of samples for research purposes. However, for those samples to reflect the in vivo state, and for experimental reliability and reproducibility, careful attention to collection, processing and storage is essential. This is particularly true for the placenta, which is potentially subjected to stressful conditions during delivery, and sample collection may be delayed owing to routine postpartum inspection by clinical staff. In addition, standardisation of the collection procedure enables samples to be shared among research groups, allowing larger datasets to be established. Here, we provide an evidence-based and experts' review of the factors surrounding collection that may influence data obtained from the human placenta. We outline particular requirements for specific techniques, and propose a protocol for optimal sample collection. We recognise that the relevance of these factors, and of the sample types collected to a particular study will depend on the research questions being addressed. We therefore anticipate that researchers will select from the protocol to meet their needs and resources available. Wherever possible, we encourage researchers to extend their collection to include additional samples that can be shared on an international collaborative basis, with appropriate informed consent, to raise the quality, as well as quantity, of placental research.
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237
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Cox LA, Li C, Glenn JP, Lange K, Spradling KD, Nathanielsz PW, Jansson T. Expression of the placental transcriptome in maternal nutrient reduction in baboons is dependent on fetal sex. J Nutr 2013; 143:1698-708. [PMID: 24047701 PMCID: PMC3796342 DOI: 10.3945/jn.112.172148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Maternal undernutrition increases the risk of perinatal complications and predisposes offspring to obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease later in life. Emerging evidence suggests that changes in placental function play a role in linking altered maternal nutrition in pregnancy to the subsequent development of adult disease. The susceptibility for disease in response to an adverse intrauterine environment differs distinctly between boys and girls, with girls typically having better outcomes. Here, we tested the hypothesis that regulation of the placental transcriptome by maternal nutrient reduction (NR) is dependent on fetal sex. We used a nonhuman primate model of NR in which maternal global food intake was reduced by 30% in baboons starting at gestational day (GD) 30. At GD 165 (term = GD 183), placental genome expression profiling of 6 control (n = 3 females, 3 males) and 6 nutrient restricted (n = 3 females, 3 males) fetuses was carried out followed by bioinformatic analysis. Surprisingly, there was no coordinated placental molecular response to decreased nutrient availability when analyzing the data without accounting for fetal sex. In contrast, female placentas exhibited a highly coordinated response that included upregulation of genes in networks, pathways, and functional groups related to programmed cell death and downregulation of genes in networks, pathways, and functional groups associated with cell proliferation. These changes were not apparent in the male placentas. Our data support the concept that female placentas initiate complex adaptive responses to an adverse intrauterine environment, which may contribute to increased survival and better pregnancy outcomes in girls.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura A. Cox
- Department of Genetics,Southwest National Primate Research Center, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX; and,To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail:
| | - Cun Li
- Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX
| | | | | | | | - Peter W. Nathanielsz
- Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX
| | - Thomas Jansson
- Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX
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238
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Cvitic S, Longtine MS, Hackl H, Wagner K, Nelson MD, Desoye G, Hiden U. The human placental sexome differs between trophoblast epithelium and villous vessel endothelium. PLoS One 2013; 8:e79233. [PMID: 24205377 PMCID: PMC3812163 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0079233] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2013] [Accepted: 09/23/2013] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Molecular mechanisms underlying sexual dimorphism in mammals, fetal sex influences on intrauterine development, and the sex-biased susceptibility for selected diseases in adulthood are novel areas of current research. As importantly, two decades of multifaceted research has established that susceptibility to many adult disorders originates in utero, commonly secondary to the effects of placental dysfunction. We hypothesized that fetal sex influences gene expression and produces functional differences in human placentas. We thus extended previous studies on sexual dimorphism in mammals, which used RNA isolated from whole tissues, to investigate the effects of sex on four cell-phenotypes within a single key tissue, human placental villi. The cells studied included cytotrophoblasts, syncytiotrophoblast, arterial and venous endothelial cells. The cells were isolated from placentas of male or female fetuses and subjected to microarray analysis. We found that fetal sex differentially affected gene expression in a cell-phenotype dependent manner among all four cell-phenotypes. The markedly enriched pathways in males were identified to be signaling pathways for graft-versus-host disease as well as the immune and inflammatory systems that parallel the reported poorer outcome of male fetuses. Our study is the first to compare global gene expression by microarray analysis in purified, characterized, somatic cells from a single human tissue, i.e. placental villi. Importantly, our findings demonstrate that there are cell-phenotype specific, and tissue-specific, sex-biased responses in the human placenta, suggesting fetal sex should be considered as an independent variable in gene expression analysis of human placental villi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvija Cvitic
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Mark S. Longtine
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
| | - Hubert Hackl
- Division of Bioinformatics, Biocenter, Innsbruck Medical University, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Karin Wagner
- Center for Medical Research, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Michael D. Nelson
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
| | - Gernot Desoye
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Ursula Hiden
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria
- * E-mail:
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239
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Vilahur N, Baccarelli AA, Bustamante M, Agramunt S, Byun HM, Fernandez MF, Sunyer J, Estivill X. Storage conditions and stability of global DNA methylation in placental tissue. Epigenomics 2013; 5:341-8. [PMID: 23750648 DOI: 10.2217/epi.13.29] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
AIM The placenta is an informative and easily available tissue for many epidemiological studies. We analyzed the extent to which storage delay affects DNA methylation. MATERIAL & METHODS Biopsies from two placentas were sequentially stored at -80°C after standing at room temperature for 30 min, 1 h, 2 h, 6 h and 24 h. Global DNA methylation was measured by bisulfite pyrosequencing of repetitive elements and the luminometric methylation assay. RESULTS Small changes in global DNA methylation in relation to time-to-storage were observed by pyrosequencing, with a coefficient of variation (COV) of 2.49% (placenta 1) and 2.86% (placenta 2), similar to the mean technical variation observed for pyrosequencing (COV: 1.91 and 1.51%, respectively). A luminometric methylation assay yielded more variable results in the two placentas analyzed, both among time points (COV: 9.13 and 10.35%, respectively) and technical replicates (COV: 11.60 and 9.80%, respectively). CONCLUSION Global DNA methylation is stable at room temperature. However, some techniques to measure methylation might be confounded by DNA degradation caused by a delay in storage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nadia Vilahur
- Center for Research in Environmental Epidemiology CREAL, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
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Zaun G, Zahedi Y, Maderwald S, Orzada S, Pütter C, Scherag A, Winterhager E, Ladd ME, Grümmer R. Repetitive exposure of mice to strong static magnetic fields in utero does not impair fertility in adulthood but may affect placental weight of offspring. J Magn Reson Imaging 2013; 39:683-90. [DOI: 10.1002/jmri.24208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2012] [Accepted: 04/12/2013] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Gregor Zaun
- Institute of Molecular Biology; University Hospital; University Duisburg-Essen; Germany
| | - Yasmin Zahedi
- Institute of Molecular Biology; University Hospital; University Duisburg-Essen; Germany
| | - Stefan Maderwald
- Erwin L. Hahn Institute for Magnetic Resonance Imaging; University Duisburg-Essen; Germany
| | - Stephan Orzada
- Erwin L. Hahn Institute for Magnetic Resonance Imaging; University Duisburg-Essen; Germany
- Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology; University Hospital; University Duisburg-Essen; Germany
| | - Carolin Pütter
- Institute for Medical Informatics; Biometry and Epidemiology, University Hospital; University of Duisburg-Essen; Germany
| | - André Scherag
- Institute for Medical Informatics; Biometry and Epidemiology, University Hospital; University of Duisburg-Essen; Germany
| | - Elke Winterhager
- Institute of Molecular Biology; University Hospital; University Duisburg-Essen; Germany
| | - Mark E. Ladd
- Erwin L. Hahn Institute for Magnetic Resonance Imaging; University Duisburg-Essen; Germany
- Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology; University Hospital; University Duisburg-Essen; Germany
| | - Ruth Grümmer
- Institute of Molecular Biology; University Hospital; University Duisburg-Essen; Germany
- Institute for Anatomy; University Hospital; University Duisburg-Essen; Germany
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Muralimanoharan S, Maloyan A, Myatt L. Evidence of sexual dimorphism in the placental function with severe preeclampsia. Placenta 2013; 34:1183-9. [PMID: 24140080 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2013.09.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2013] [Revised: 09/17/2013] [Accepted: 09/19/2013] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Preeclampsia (PE) affects 5-8% of pregnancies and is responsible for 18% of maternal deaths in the US, and for long-term complications in mother and child. PE is an inflammatory state and may influence placental function in a sex-specific manner. We determined if there is a sexual dimorphism in the placental inflammatory and apoptotic responses in preeclamptic pregnancies. Placentas were collected from normotensive and preeclamptic pregnancies with either male or female fetuses (MPE and FPE respectively) after c-section at term with no labor. Expression patterns of markers of inflammation measured by ELISA, as well as hypoxia, apoptosis and angiogenesis markers measured by Western blotting were determined in the placenta. Consistent with previous studies, an increase in inflammation, hypoxia, and apoptotic cell death was observed in PE compared to normotensive pregnancies. Levels of TNFα, IL-6 and IL-8, and HIF-1α were significantly greater, whereas the angiogenic marker VEGF was significantly reduced in MPE vs. FPE. Sexual dimorphism was also observed in the activation of cell death: the number of TUNEL-positive cells, and the expression pro-apoptotic markers PUMA and Bax being higher in MPE vs. FPE. We also found an increase in the levels of protein and DNA-binding activity of NFκB p65 in MPE vs. FPE. In summary, we show here that in preeclamptic pregnancies the placentas of males were associated with significantly higher expression of inflammatory, hypoxia and apoptotic molecules but reduced expression of a pro-angiogenic marker compared to placentas of female fetuses. We propose that the transcription factor NFκB p65 might, at least partially, be involved in sexual dimorphism during PE.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Muralimanoharan
- Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Research, Dept of OB/GYN, University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
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242
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Lian IA, Langaas M, Moses E, Johansson Å. Differential gene expression at the maternal-fetal interface in preeclampsia is influenced by gestational age. PLoS One 2013; 8:e69848. [PMID: 23936112 PMCID: PMC3729459 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0069848] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2013] [Accepted: 06/12/2013] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Genome-wide transcription data of utero-placental tissue has been used to identify altered gene expression associated with preeclampsia (PE). As many women with PE deliver preterm, there is often a difference in gestational age between PE women and healthy pregnant controls. This may pose a potential bias since gestational age has been shown to dramatically influence gene expression in utero-placental tissue. By pooling data from three genome-wide transcription studies of the maternal-fetal interface, we have evaluated the relative effect of gestational age and PE on gene expression. A total of 18,180 transcripts were evaluated in 49 PE cases and 105 controls, with gestational age ranging from week 14 to 42. A total of 22 transcripts were associated with PE, whereas 92 transcripts with gestational age (nominal P value <1.51*10−6, Bonferroni adjusted P value <0.05). Our results indicate that gestational age has a great influence on gene expression both in normal and PE-complicated pregnancies. This effect might introduce serious bias in data analyses and needs to be carefully assessed in future genome-wide transcription studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ingrid A. Lian
- Department of Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Mette Langaas
- Department of Mathematical Sciences, NTNU, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Eric Moses
- Centre for Genetic Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Åsa Johansson
- Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- Uppsala Clinical Research Center, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- * E-mail:
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243
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Katbamna B, Klutz N, Pudrith C, Lavery JP, Ide CF. Prenatal smoke exposure: effects on infant auditory system and placental gene expression. Neurotoxicol Teratol 2013; 38:61-71. [PMID: 23665419 DOI: 10.1016/j.ntt.2013.04.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2012] [Revised: 04/23/2013] [Accepted: 04/24/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Prenatal smoke exposure has been shown to change cochlear echo response amplitudes and auditory brainstem response (ABR) wave latencies in newborns. Since gene expression changes are often synchronized in different tissue types, the goal of the present work was to determine the relationships between prenatal smoke exposure induced changes in hearing responses with changes in placental gene expression. Results showed significant cotinine level elevations in mothers who smoked ≥10cigarettes/day during their pregnancy compared to no detectable cotinine in nonsmoking mothers. Cochlear echo response amplitudes in the 2-8kHz range and ABR wave latencies, specifically wave V and interpeak interval I-V, were also significantly reduced in newborns of smoking mothers. Functional pathway analysis of upregulated placental genes using the Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) online software showed significant enrichment of terms associated with neurodevelopmental processes including glutamatergic and cholinergic systems and a number of wingless type proteins in the top two tiers with corrected enrichment p-values of ≤0.05. Other relevant functional pathways were significant at unadjusted enrichment p-values of 0.001-0.11 and included calcium signaling, neurotransmission/neurological processes and oxidative stress. The neurological process clusters included 7 genes (EML2, OTOR, SLC26A5, TBL1X, TECTA, USH1C and USH1G) known to modulate cochlear outer hair cell motility. We localized proteins encoded by the top two regulated genes, TBL1X and USH1C, using immunohistochemistry to placental stem and anchoring villi associated with active contractile function. These placental genes may mediate active contraction and relaxation in the placental villi, for example, during maternal-fetal perfusion matching, similar to the active lengthening and shortening of the cochlear outer hair cells during sensory transduction. Thus, the functional consequence of their alteration in the cochlea would be reflected as a decline in cochlear echoes as shown in this study. Such parallel changes suggest the potential utility of placental gene expression as a surrogate for evaluating changes in the developing cochlea related to potential aberrant cochlear function in newborns with prenatal smoke exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bharti Katbamna
- Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5355, United States.
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244
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The epigenetics of maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy and effects on child development. Dev Psychopathol 2013; 24:1377-90. [PMID: 23062304 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579412000776] [Citation(s) in RCA: 172] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
The period of in utero development is one of the most critical windows during which adverse intrauterine conditions and exposures can influence the growth and development of the fetus as well as the child's future postnatal health and behavior. Maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy remains a relatively common but nonetheless hazardous in utero exposure. Previous studies have associated prenatal smoke exposure with reduced birth weight, poor developmental and psychological outcomes, and increased risk for diseases and behavioral disorders later in life. Researchers are now learning that many of the mechanisms whereby maternal smoke exposure may affect key pathways crucial for proper fetal growth and development are epigenetic in nature. Maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy has been associated with altered DNA methylation and dysregulated expression of microRNA, but a deeper understanding of the epigenetics of maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy as well as how these epigenetic changes may affect later health and behavior remain to be elucidated. This article seeks to explore many of the previously described epigenetic alterations associated with maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy and assess how such changes may have consequences for both fetal growth and development, as well as later child health, behavior, and well-being. We also outline future directions for this new and exciting field of research.
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245
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Gabory A, Roseboom TJ, Moore T, Moore LG, Junien C. Placental contribution to the origins of sexual dimorphism in health and diseases: sex chromosomes and epigenetics. Biol Sex Differ 2013; 4:5. [PMID: 23514128 PMCID: PMC3618244 DOI: 10.1186/2042-6410-4-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 240] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2012] [Accepted: 03/04/2013] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Sex differences occur in most non-communicable diseases, including metabolic diseases, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, psychiatric and neurological disorders and cancer. In many cases, the susceptibility to these diseases begins early in development. The observed differences between the sexes may result from genetic and hormonal differences and from differences in responses to and interactions with environmental factors, including infection, diet, drugs and stress. The placenta plays a key role in fetal growth and development and, as such, affects the fetal programming underlying subsequent adult health and accounts, in part for the developmental origin of health and disease (DOHaD). There is accumulating evidence to demonstrate the sex-specific relationships between diverse environmental influences on placental functions and the risk of disease later in life. As one of the few tissues easily collectable in humans, this organ may therefore be seen as an ideal system for studying how male and female placenta sense nutritional and other stresses, such as endocrine disruptors. Sex-specific regulatory pathways controlling sexually dimorphic characteristics in the various organs and the consequences of lifelong differences in sex hormone expression largely account for such responses. However, sex-specific changes in epigenetic marks are generated early after fertilization, thus before adrenal and gonad differentiation in the absence of sex hormones and in response to environmental conditions. Given the abundance of X-linked genes involved in placentogenesis, and the early unequal gene expression by the sex chromosomes between males and females, the role of X- and Y-chromosome-linked genes, and especially those involved in the peculiar placenta-specific epigenetics processes, giving rise to the unusual placenta epigenetic landscapes deserve particular attention. However, even with recent developments in this field, we still know little about the mechanisms underlying the early sex-specific epigenetic marks resulting in sex-biased gene expression of pathways and networks. As a critical messenger between the maternal environment and the fetus, the placenta may play a key role not only in buffering environmental effects transmitted by the mother but also in expressing and modulating effects due to preconceptional exposure of both the mother and the father to stressful conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Gabory
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, Jouy-en-Josas, F-78352, France.
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Munch EM, Harris RA, Mohammad M, Benham AL, Pejerrey SM, Showalter L, Hu M, Shope CD, Maningat PD, Gunaratne PH, Haymond M, Aagaard K. Transcriptome profiling of microRNA by Next-Gen deep sequencing reveals known and novel miRNA species in the lipid fraction of human breast milk. PLoS One 2013; 8:e50564. [PMID: 23418415 PMCID: PMC3572105 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0050564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 136] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2012] [Accepted: 10/22/2012] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
While breast milk has unique health advantages for infants, the mechanisms by which it regulates the physiology of newborns are incompletely understood. miRNAs have been described as functioning transcellularly, and have been previously isolated in cell-free and exosomal form from bodily liquids (serum, saliva, urine) and tissues, including mammary tissue. We hypothesized that breast milk in general, and milk fat globules in particular, contain significant numbers of known and limited novel miRNA species detectable with massively parallel sequencing. Extracted RNA from lactating mothers before and following short-term treatment with recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) was smRNA-enriched. smRNA-Seq was performed to generate 124,110,646 36-nt reads. Of these, 31,102,927 (25%) exactly matched known human miRNAs; with relaxing of stringency, 74,716,151 (60%) matched known miRNAs including 308 of the 1018 (29%) mature miRNAs (miRBase 16.0). These miRNAs are predicted to target 9074 genes; the 10 most abundant of these predicted to target 2691 genes with enrichment for transcriptional regulation of metabolic and immune responses. We identified 21 putative novel miRNAs, of which 12 were confirmed in a large validation set that included cohorts of lactating women consuming enriched diets. Of particular interest, we observed that expression of several novel miRNAs were altered by the perturbed maternal diet, notably following a high-fat intake (p<0.05). Our findings suggest that known and novel miRNAs are enriched in breast milk fat globules, and expression of several novel miRNA species is regulated by maternal diet. Based on robust pathway mapping, our data supports the notion that these maternally secreted miRNAs (stable in the milk fat globules) play a regulatory role in the infant and account in part for the health benefits of breast milk. We further speculate that regulation of these miRNA by a high fat maternal diet enables modulation of fetal metabolism to accommodate significant dietary challenges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erika M. Munch
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - R. Alan Harris
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Mahmoud Mohammad
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital, The Children’s Nutrition Research Center, US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Ashley L. Benham
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Sasha M. Pejerrey
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Lori Showalter
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Min Hu
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Cynthia D. Shope
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Patricia D. Maningat
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital, The Children’s Nutrition Research Center, US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Preethi H. Gunaratne
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Department of Pathology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Morey Haymond
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology and Metabolism, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital, The Children’s Nutrition Research Center, US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Kjersti Aagaard
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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247
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Increased placental expression and maternal serum levels of apoptosis-inducing TRAIL in recurrent miscarriage. Placenta 2013; 34:141-8. [PMID: 23290504 PMCID: PMC3562443 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2012.11.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2012] [Revised: 11/26/2012] [Accepted: 11/28/2012] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Recurrent miscarriage (RM; ≥3 consecutive pregnancy losses) occurs in 1-3% of fertile couples. No biomarkers with high predictive value of threatening miscarriage have been identified. We aimed to profile whole-genome differential gene expression in RM placental tissue, and to determine the protein levels of identified loci in maternal sera in early pregnancy. METHODS GeneChips (Affymetrix(®)) were used for discovery and Taqman RT-qPCR assays for replication of mRNA expression in placentas from RM cases (n = 13) compared to uncomplicated pregnancies matched for gestational age (n = 23). Concentrations of soluble TRAIL (sTRAIL) and calprotectin in maternal serum in normal first trimester (n = 35) and failed pregnancies (early miscarriage, n = 18, late miscarriage, n = 4; tubal pregnancy, n = 11) were determined using ELISA. RESULTS In RM placentas 30 differentially expressed (with nominal P-value < 0.05) transcripts were identified. Significantly increased placental mRNA expression of TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL; P = 1.4 × 10(-3); fold-change 1.68) and S100A8 (P = 7.9 × 10(-4); fold-change 2.56) encoding for inflammatory marker calprotectin (S100A8/A9) was confirmed by RT-qPCR. When compared to normal first trimester pregnancy (sTRAIL 16.1 ± 1.6 pg/ml), significantly higher maternal serum concentration of sTRAIL was detected at the RM event (33.6 ± 4.3 pg/ml, P = 0.00027), and in pregnant women, who developed an unpredicted miscarriage 2-50 days after prospective serum sampling (28.5 ± 4.4 pg/ml, P = 0.039). Women with tubal pregnancy also exhibited elevated sTRAIL (30.5 ± 3.9 pg/ml, P = 0.035). Maternal serum levels of calprotectin were neither diagnostic nor prognostic to early pregnancy failures (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS The study indicated of sTRAIL as a potential predictive biomarker in maternal serum for early pregnancy complications.
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248
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Pipino C, Shangaris P, Resca E, Zia S, Deprest J, Sebire NJ, David AL, Guillot PV, De Coppi P. Placenta as a reservoir of stem cells: an underutilized resource? Br Med Bull 2013. [PMID: 23184854 DOI: 10.1093/bmb/lds033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Both embryonic and adult tissues are sources of stem cells with therapeutic potential but with some limitations in the clinical practice such as ethical considerations, difficulty in obtaining and tumorigenicity. As an alternative, the placenta is a foetal tissue that can be obtained during gestation and at term, and it represents a reservoir of stem cells with various potential. SOURCES OF DATA We reviewed the relevant literature concerning the main stem cells that populate the placenta. AREAS OF AGREEMENT Recently, the placenta has become useful source of stem cells that offer advantages in terms of proliferation and plasticity when compared with adult cells and permit to overcome the ethical and safety concern inherent in embryonic stem cells. In addition, the placenta has the advantage of containing epithelia, haematopoietic and mesenchymal stem cells. These stem cells possess immunosuppressive properties and have the capacity of suppress in vivo inflammatory responses. AREAS OF CONTROVERSY Some studies describe a subpopulation of placenta stem cells expressing pluripotency markers, but for other studies, it is not clear whether pluripotent stem cells are present during gestation beyond the first few weeks. Particularly, the expression of some pluripotency markers such as SSEA-3, TRA-1-60 and TRA-1-81 has been reported by us, but not by others. GROWING POINTS Placenta stem cells could be of great importance after delivery for banking for autologous and allogeneic applications. The beneficial effects of these cells may be due to secretion of bioactive molecules that act through paracrine actions promoting beneficial effects. AREAS TIMELY FOR DEVELOPING RESEARCH Understanding the role of placenta stem cells during pregnancy and their paracrine actions could help in the study of some diseases that affect the placenta during pregnancy.
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249
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Kutzler M, Sahlfeld L, Fellows E. Who Let the Dogs In: A Canine Trophoblast Invasion Model for Pre-eclampsia. Reprod Domest Anim 2012; 47 Suppl 6:186-9. [DOI: 10.1111/rda.12037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2012] [Accepted: 07/14/2012] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- M Kutzler
- Department of Animal and Rangeland Sciences; Theriogenology Laboratory; Oregon State University; Corvallis; OR; USA
| | - L Sahlfeld
- Department of Animal and Rangeland Sciences; Theriogenology Laboratory; Oregon State University; Corvallis; OR; USA
| | - E Fellows
- Department of Animal and Rangeland Sciences; Theriogenology Laboratory; Oregon State University; Corvallis; OR; USA
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250
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O'Connell BA, Moritz KM, Walker DW, Dickinson H. Sexually dimorphic placental development throughout gestation in the spiny mouse (Acomys cahirinus). Placenta 2012; 34:119-26. [PMID: 23260227 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2012.11.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2012] [Revised: 11/08/2012] [Accepted: 11/12/2012] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES It has been hypothesized that male fetuses down regulate placental growth during periods of accelerated fetal growth. We aimed to investigate this, and determine whether sexual dimorphism was apparent in the spiny mouse placenta. We hypothesized that expression of fetal growth promoters would be higher in placentas of males, whereas genes involved in placental structural development would be more highly expressed in placentas of females. METHODS Spiny mouse dams, a precocial rodent with an in utero endocrine milieu dissimilar from other rodents, but akin to humans, were sacrificed at gestational ages 15-37 (term = 39 days). Placentas were collected and processed for histology or qPCR analysis of selected genes (GCM1, MAP2K1, SLC2A1, NR3C1, IGF1, IGF1R). RESULTS Fetal and placental weights were similar for both sexes. Placentas of female fetuses had less spongy zone (P(SEX) < 0.0001), and more labyrinth (P(SEX) < 0.0001) than males. Early placenta and labyrinth expression of SLC2A1 was higher in males than females (P(SEX) < 0.05). Labyrinthine IGF1R remained constant until term in the female, compared with male where expression increased until term. Peak MAP2K1 expression occurred earlier in the male placenta than the female. Spongy zone SLC2A1 remained constant until term in the female, compared with male where expression increased until term. CONCLUSIONS The spiny mouse is a species that exhibits sexually dimorphic placental development. We suggest that these sex differences in placental gene expression and structure may underlie or compound the male vulnerability to a sub-optimal in utero environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- B A O'Connell
- The Ritchie Centre, Monash Institute of Medical Research, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia
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