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ZIKV can infect human term placentas in the absence of maternal factors.

ABSTRACT: Zika virus infection can result in devastating pregnancy outcomes when it crosses the placental barrier. For human pregnancies, the mechanisms of vertical transmission remain enigmatic. Utilizing a human placenta-cotyledon perfusion model, we examined Zika virus exposure in the absence of maternal factors. To distinguish responses related to viral infection vs. recognition, we evaluated cotyledons perfused with either active or inactivated Zika virus. Active Zika virus exposure resulted in infection, cell death and syncytium injury. Pathology corresponded with transcriptional changes related to inflammation and innate immunity. Inactive Zika virus exposure also led to syncytium injury and related changes in gene expression but not cell death. Our observations reveal pathologies and innate immune responses that are dependent on infection or virus placenta interactions independent of productive infection. Importantly, our findings indicate that Zika virus can infect and compromise placentas in the absence of maternal humoral factors that may be protective.

SUBMITTER: Villazana-Kretzer DL

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8933440 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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ZIKV can infect human term placentas in the absence of maternal factors.

Villazana-Kretzer Diana L DL Wuertz Kathryn McGuckin KM Newhouse Daniel D Damicis Jennifer R JR Dornisch Elisabeth M EM Voss Kathleen M KM Muruato Antonio E AE Paymaster Jennifer A JA Schmiedecke Stacey S SS Edwards Sarah M SM Napolitano Peter G PG Tisoncik-Go Jennifer J Ieronimakis Nicholas N Gale Michael M

Communications biology 20220318 1

Zika virus infection can result in devastating pregnancy outcomes when it crosses the placental barrier. For human pregnancies, the mechanisms of vertical transmission remain enigmatic. Utilizing a human placenta-cotyledon perfusion model, we examined Zika virus exposure in the absence of maternal factors. To distinguish responses related to viral infection vs. recognition, we evaluated cotyledons perfused with either active or inactivated Zika virus. Active Zika virus exposure resulted in infec ...[more]

PMID: 35304593

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Project description:Aims/hypothesisMetformin is increasingly used therapeutically during pregnancy worldwide, particularly in the treatment of gestational diabetes, which affects a substantial proportion of pregnant women globally. However, the impact on placental metabolism remains unclear. In view of the association between metformin use in pregnancy and decreased birthweight, it is essential to understand how metformin modulates the bioenergetic and anabolic functions of the placenta.MethodsA cohort of 55 placentas delivered by elective Caesarean section at term was collected from consenting participants. Trophoblasts were isolated from the placental samples and treated in vitro with clinically relevant doses of metformin (0.01 mmol/l or 0.1 mmol/l) or vehicle. Respiratory function was assayed using high-resolution respirometry to measure oxygen concentration and calculated [Formula: see text]. Glycolytic rate and glycolytic stress assays were performed using Agilent Seahorse XF assays. Fatty acid uptake and oxidation measurements were conducted using radioisotope-labelled assays. Lipidomic analysis was conducted using LC-MS. Gene expression and protein analysis were performed using RT-PCR and western blotting, respectively.ResultsComplex I-supported oxidative phosphorylation was lower in metformin-treated trophoblasts (0.01 mmol/l metformin, 61.7% of control, p<0.05; 0.1 mmol/l metformin, 43.1% of control, p<0.001). The proton efflux rate arising from glycolysis under physiological conditions was increased following metformin treatment, up to 23±5% above control conditions following treatment with 0.1 mmol/l metformin (p<0.01). There was a significant increase in triglyceride concentrations in trophoblasts treated with 0.1 mmol/l metformin (p<0.05), particularly those of esters of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids. Fatty acid oxidation was reduced by ~50% in trophoblasts treated with 0.1 mmol/l metformin compared with controls (p<0.001), with no difference in uptake between treatment groups.Conclusions/interpretationIn primary trophoblasts derived from term placentas metformin treatment caused a reduction in oxidative phosphorylation through partial inactivation of complex I and potentially by other mechanisms. Metformin-treated trophoblasts accumulate lipids, particularly long- and very-long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids. Our findings raise clinically important questions about the balance of risk of metformin use during pregnancy, particularly in situations where the benefits are not clear-cut and alternative therapies are available.

Project description:Zika virus (ZIKV) infection is now firmly linked to congenital Zika syndrome (CZS), including fetal microcephaly. While Aedes species of mosquito are the primary vector for ZIKV, sexual transmission of ZIKV is a significant route of infection. ZIKV has been documented in human, mouse, and nonhuman primate (NHP) semen. It is critical to establish NHP models of the vertical transfer of ZIKV that recapitulate human pathogenesis. We hypothesized that vaginal deposition of ZIKV-infected baboon semen would lead to maternal infection and vertical transfer in the olive baboon (Papio anubis). Epidemiological studies suggest an increased rate of CZS in the Americas compared to the original link to CZS in French Polynesia; therefore, we also compared the French Polynesian (FP) ZIKV isolate to the Puerto Rican (PR) isolate. Timed-pregnant baboons (n = 6) were inoculated via vaginal deposition of baboon semen containing 106 focus-forming units (FFU) of ZIKV (n = 3 for FP isolate H/PF/2013; n = 3 for PR isolate PRVABC59) at midgestation (86 to 95 days of gestation [dG]; term, 183 dG) on day 0 (all dams) and then at 7-day intervals through 3 weeks. Maternal blood, saliva, and cervicovaginal wash (CVW) samples were obtained. Animals were euthanized at 28 days (n = 5) or 39 days (n = 1) after the initial inoculation, and maternal/fetal tissues were collected. Viremia was achieved in 3/3 FP ZIKV-infected dams and 2/3 PR ZIKV-infected dams. ZIKV RNA was detected in CVW samples of 5/6 dams. ZIKV RNA was detected in lymph nodes but not the ovaries, uterus, cervix, or vagina in FP isolate-infected dams. ZIKV RNA was detected in lymph nodes (3/3), uterus (2/3), and vagina (2/3) in PR isolate-infected dams. Placenta, amniotic fluid, and fetal tissues were ZIKV RNA negative in the FP isolate-infected dams, whereas 2/3 PR isolate-infected dam placentas were ZIKV RNA positive. We conclude that ZIKV-infected semen is a means of ZIKV transmission during pregnancy in primates. The PR isolate appeared more capable of widespread dissemination to tissues, including reproductive tissues and placenta, than the FP isolate.IMPORTANCE Zika virus remains a worldwide health threat, with outbreaks still occurring in the Americas. While mosquitos are the primary vector for the spread of the virus, sexual transmission of Zika virus is also a significant means of infection, especially in terms of passage from an infected to an uninfected partner. While sexual transmission has been documented in humans, and male-to-female transmission has been reported in mice, ours is the first study in nonhuman primates to demonstrate infection via vaginal deposition of Zika virus-infected semen. The latter is important since a recent publication indicated that human semen inhibited, in a laboratory setting, Zika virus infection of reproductive tissues. We also found that compared to the French Polynesian isolate, the Puerto Rican Zika virus isolate led to greater spread throughout the body, particularly in reproductive tissues. The American isolates of Zika virus appear to have acquired mutations that increase their efficacy.

Project description:Placental villi play pivotal roles in feto-maternal transportation and phospholipids constitute a major part of the villous membrane. We have been developing and optimizing an imaging system based on a matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI)-based mass spectrometer, which provides clear two-dimensional molecular distribution patterns using highly sensitive mass spectrometry from mixtures of ions generated on tissue surfaces. We recently applied this technology to normal human uncomplicated term placentas and detected the specific distribution of sphingomyelin (SM) (d18:1/16:0) in stem villi and phosphatidylcholine (PC) (16:0/20:4) in terminal villi. In the present study, we applied this technology to nine placentas with maternal or fetal complications, and determined whether a relationship existed between these specific distribution patterns of phospholipid molecules and the six representative pathological findings of placentas, i.e., villitis of unknown etiology (VUE), thrombus, atherosis, chorioamnionitis (CAM), immature terminal villi, and multiple branched terminal villi. In two placentas with the first and second largest total number of positive pathological findings, i.e., five and three positive findings, the specific distribution of SM (d18:1/16:0) in stem villi and PC (16:0/20:4) in terminal villi disappeared. The common pathological findings in these two placentas were atherosis, immature terminal villi, and multiple branched terminal villi, suggesting the possible involvement of the underperfusion of maternal blood into the intervillous space. On the other hand, the number of pathological findings were two or less in the seven other placentas, in which no specific relationships were observed between the differential expression patterns of these two phospholipids in stem and terminal villi and the pathological findings of the placentas; however, the specific distribution pattern of SM (d18:1/16:0) in stem villi disappeared in four placentas, while that of PC (16:0/20:4) in terminal villi was preserved. These results suggested that the absence of the specific distribution of PC (16:0/20:4) in terminal villi, possibly in combination with the absence of SM (d18:1/16:0) in stem villi, was linked to placental morphological changes in response to maternal underperfusion of the placenta.

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ZIKV can infect human term placentas in the absence of maternal factors.

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ZIKV can infect human term placentas in the absence of maternal factors.

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