‘Mini-placentas’ Reveal Causes of Pre-Eclampsia

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Placental organoid (circle in the centre). Trophoblast cells are invading out of the organoid, mimicking placental cells invading the uterus in the early weeks of pregnancy. Credit: Friedrich Miescher Institute/University of Cambridge

Key points:

  • Scientists grew trophoblast organoids or “mini-placentas”—a cellular model of the early stages of placenta—to examine how the placenta develops and interacts with the inner lining of the womb during early pregnancy.
  • Researchers identified several genes and proteins that regulate blood flow, help organoids develop, and support uterine implantation.
  • Mini-placentas can provide new perspective for future studies into pre-eclampsia and similar disorders.

In new research, scientists grew “mini-placentas” in the lab and used them to examine how the placenta develops and interacts with the inner lining of the womb. The study, published in Cell Stem Cell, examines this model of the developing human placenta to help investigate major disorders of pregnancy.

Successful pregnancy depends on the interactions between cells of the endometrium and the cells of the placenta. These interactions are necessary for increasing the maternal blood supply to placenta, which is critical for fetal growth and development.

When these interactions do not occur properly, they can lead to complications such as pre-eclampsia—a condition that causes high blood pressure during pregnancy and can put the health of both mother and baby at risk. Researchers have struggled to study pre-eclampsia as it depends on the way the placenta develops in the first few weeks.

The current study used trophoblast organoids or mini-placentas—a cellular model of the early stages of placenta—to observe early pregnancy and related reproductive disorders. They grew the organoids from placenta cells and applied proteins secreted by uterine natural killer cells to mimic the conditions where the placenta implants itself.

Researchers identified specific proteins that helped organoids develop and successfully implant. They also found several genes that regulate blood flow and support uterine implantation, which will serve as future areas for further study into pre-eclampsia and similar disorders.

“Women usually present with pre-eclampsia at the end of pregnancy, but to really understand it, we have to look at what’s happening in the first few weeks,” said study co-lead Margherita Turco of the Friedrich Miescher Institute. “Using mini-placentas, we can do just that, providing clues as to how and why pre-eclampsia occurs.”

 

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