Smoking during pregnancy influences the maternal immune response in mice and humans.

Objective: During pregnancy the maternal immune system has to adapt its response to accommodate the fetus. The objective of this study was to analyze the effects of smoking on the maternal immune system.

Study Design: First-trimester decidual tissue and peripheral blood of smoking and nonsmoking women were analyzed by real time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and flow cytometry.