Knockdown of Placental Major Facilitator Superfamily Domain Containing 2a in Pregnant Mice Reduces Fetal Brain Growth and Phospholipid Docosahexaenoic Acid Content.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is an n-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acid critical for fetal brain development that is transported to the fetus from the mother by the placenta. The lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) transporter, Major Facilitator Superfamily Domain Containing 2a (MFSD2a), is localized in the basal plasma membrane of the syncytiotrophoblast of the human placenta, and MFSD2a expression correlates with umbilical cord blood LPC-DHA levels in human pregnancy. We hypothesized that placenta-specific knockdown of MFSD2a in pregnant mice reduces phospholipid DHA accumulation in the fetal brain.

Methods

Mouse blastocysts (E3.5) were transduced with an EGFP-expressing lentivirus containing either an shRNA targeting MFSD2a or a non-coding sequence (SCR),

SUBMITTER: Powell TL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10708493 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature