Several major vascular tissues, such as the aorta-gonad-mesonephros region (AGM), yolk sac, and fetal liver have been confirmed to possess hematopoietic function. Recently, the placenta has been demonstrated as another hematopoietic organ. However, it is not conclusive whether the placenta possesses hematopoietic ability. Therefore, we undertook a series of experiments to study the hematopoieti...

Considering that preterm birth accounts for about 6-10% of all births in Western countries and of more than 65% of all perinatal deaths, elucidation of the particularly complicated mechanisms of labor is essential for determination of appropriate and effective therapeutic interventions. Labor in humans results from a complex interplay of fetal and maternal factors, which act upon the uterus to ...

Microbial colonization and infection of placental tissues often lead to adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preterm birth, a leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. The fetal membranes of the placenta, a physical and active barrier to microbial invasion, encapsulate the fetus and secure its intrauterine environment. To examine the innate defense system of the human placenta, antimicro...

Pandemics pose a more significant threat to pregnant women than to the nonpregnant population and may have a detrimental effect on the well being of the fetus. We have developed an animal model to evaluate the consequences of a viral infection characterized by lack of fetal transmission. The experiments described in this work show that viral infection of the placenta can elicit a fetal inflamma...

Severe early onset pre-eclampsia is a serious pregnancy complication, believed to arise as a result of persistent placental hypoxia due to impaired placentation. Pregnancy-associated plasma protein A2 (PAPPA2) is very highly expressed in the placenta relative to all other tissues. There is some evidence that PAPPA2 mRNA and protein are increased in association with pre-eclampsia. The aim of the...

Background and aim: The third stage of labour is one of the most troublesome stages of child delivery. The basic principle of the third stage management is administrating prophylactic uterotonics. However, the time of its administration varies in different hospitals. This study aimed to determine the effect of intramuscular oxytocin injection after emergence of the fetal anterior shoulder or pl...

Preeclampsia is one of the leading causes of maternal mortality/morbidity and preterm delivery in the world, affecting 3% to 5% of pregnant women. The pathophysiology of preeclampsia likely involves both maternal and fetal/placental factors. Abnormalities in the development of placental vessels early in pregnancy may result in placental hypoperfusion, hypoxia, or ischemia. Hypoperfusion, hypoxi...

Objective: Placental chorioangioma is the most common non-trophoblastic vascular benign tumor of placenta, with an estimated incidence 1% all pregnancies. Most chorioangiomas are small asymptomatic lesions that found incidentally only postnatally during histologic examination placenta. Voluminous (>4–5 cm), however, less and more often diagnosed prenatally, through ultrasound imaging. Color ...

79 Background 80 Elucidation of the biochemical pathways involved in activation of preterm and term human 81 labour would facilitate the development of effective management and inform judgements 82 regarding the necessity for preterm tocolysis and post-term induction. Prostaglandins act at 83 all stages of human reproduction, and are potentially activators of labour. 84 Methods 85 Expression of...