Mouse placental scaffolds: a three-dimensional environment model for recellularization.

The rich extracellular matrix (ECM) and availability make placenta eligible as alternative biomaterial source. Herein we produced placental mouse scaffolds by decellularization, and structure, composition, and cytocompatibility were evaluated to be considered as a biomaterial. We obtained a cell-free scaffold containing 9.

Establishment of 3-dimensional scaffolds from hemochorial placentas.

Introduction: The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a complex, tissue-specific 3-dimensional network that controls cell processes. ECMs derived from various organs are used to produce biological scaffolds comparable to the native microenvironment. Although placentas are often overlooked, they offer a rich ECM for tissue engineering, especially the hemochorial placentas from rodents and lagomorphs that resemble the ones from humans.

Morphological characteristics of mule conceptuses during early development.

Hybrids between species are often infertile and extremely rare among mammals. Mules, i.e.

Optimization of Canine Placenta Decellularization: An Alternative Source of Biological Scaffolds for Regenerative Medicine.

Due to the scarcity of tissues and organs for transplantation, the demand for bioengineered tissues is increasing with the advancement of technologies and new treatments in human and animal regenerative medicine. Thus, decellularized placental extracellular matrix (ECM) has emerged as a new tool for the production of biological scaffolds for subsequent recellularization and implantation for recovery of injured areas or even for replacement of organ and tissue fractions. To be classified as an ideal biological scaffold, the ECM must be acellular and preserve its proteins and physical features to be useful for cellular adhesion.

Reproductive system development in male and female horse embryos and fetuses: Gonadal hyperplasia revisited.

In horses, pregnancy is characterized by high levels of maternal estrogens that are produced largely by the interstitial tissue inside the gonads of the offspring, associated with a physiological gonadal hyperplasia, that is uncommon in other species. However, a detailed structural-functional understanding of the early stages of gonadal development and hyperplasia has remained elusive in horse pregnancy because of the lack of substantial data. The goal of this study was to describe the genital organs' development in 19 early horse embryos and fetuses (days 20-140 of gestation) of both sexes by means of anatomy, histology, stereology, and immunohistochemistry, with a specific focus on gonadal hyperplasia and interstitial tissue development.

Decellularized bovine cotyledons may serve as biological scaffolds with preserved vascular arrangement.

Technically produced scaffolds are common to establish transplantable tissues for regenerative medicine, but also biological ones that are closer to the natural condition become of interest. Placentas are promising, because they represented available, complete organs with rich extracellular matrix (ECM) and well-developed vasculature that easily could build anastomoses to a host's organ. Only placentas from larger animal models such as the bovine meet the dimensions large enough for most organs but are not adequately described yet.

Placentation in the colugos Cynocephalus volans and Galeopterus variegatus (Dermoptera) and the transition from labyrinthine to villous placentation in primates.

Introduction: Phylogenetics and genomics place colugos as the sister group to primates. Therefore their placentation is of interest in an evolutionary perspective. Previous accounts are fragmentary, not readily accessible and sometimes contradictory.

Cochlear epithelial of dog fetuses: a new source of multipotent stem cells.

Hearing loss caused by the damage of cochlea sensory cells or neurons is a common human disease, but also affects dogs and other animals. To test their progenitor nature as potential value for future therapies, we characterized cells derived from the cochlear epithelium in dog fetuses. In total, 8 fetuses of 35-40 days of gestation, derived from castration campaigns, were investigated.

Extracellular matrix in epitheliochorial, endotheliochorial and haemochorial placentation and its potential application for regenerative medicine.

A placenta is defined as structural approximation of maternal and foetal tissues to perform physiological exchange. Associated processes of differentiation and the establishment of its cells take place within the extracellular matrix (ECM) that provides a rich environment of collagens, fibronectins, cytokines and other components. Placental ECM is promising for tissue regeneration purposes, because it has immune tolerance capacities that may cause only minimal rejections of transplants with immunological differences between donor and recipient.

Vascularization and VEGF expression altered in bovine yolk sacs from IVF and NT technologies.

Reproductive technologies are widely used in cattle, although many are associated with high-embryonic mortality, especially during early gestation, when the yolk sac undergoes macroscopic changes in structure. We hypothesized that vasculogenesis and angiogenesis are affected, thereby affecting embryonic and placental differentiation. To test this, we studied yolk sac development and gene expression of the vascular endothelial growth factor system (VEGF-A, VEGFR-1/Flt-1, VEGFR-2/KDR).

The Placenta as an Organ and a Source of Stem Cells and Extracellular Matrix: A Review.

The placenta is a temporal, dynamic and diverse organ with important immunological features that facilitate embryonic and fetal development and survival, notwithstanding the fact that several aspects of its formation and function closely resemble tumor progression. Placentation in mammals is commonly used to characterize the evolution of species, including insights into human evolution. Although most placentas are discarded after birth, they are a high-yield source for the isolation of stem/progenitor cells and are rich in extracellular matrix (ECM), representing an important resource for regenerative medicine purposes.

Pilot study: bone marrow stem cells as a treatment for dogs with chronic spinal cord injury.

Background: Chronic Spinal Cord injury is a common, severe, and medically untreatable disease. Since the functional outcomes of acute and experimental chronic spinal cord injury have been shown to improve with stem cell therapy, a case study was conducted to test if the application of stem cell also regenerates chronic SCI dysfunction. Transplantation of foetal bone marrow stem cells was applied in seven dogs with chronic spinal cord injury.

Vascular alterations underlie developmental problems manifested in cloned cattle before or after birth.

Although assisted reproductive techniques are commonly applied in humans and animals, they are frequently associated with major developmental deficits and reduced viability. To explore abnormalities associated with cloning or nuclear transfer (NT) as the most invasive of these methods, we used a bovine model to characterize abnormalities. Detailed necropsy examinations were done on 13 calves that died soon after birth; in addition, we included data from embryos and fetuses (produced by NT) that terminated prematurely.

Placentation and fetal membrane development in the South American coati, Nasua nasua (Mammalia, Carnivora, Procyonidae).

Background: Placental research in carnivores has concentrated on domestic species, which have zonary, labyrinthine placentas with an endotheliochorial barrier. Although the coati, Nasua nasua, is a widely distributed species in South America, data on the development of the placenta and the fetal membranes in this species are very sparse.

Findings: Four placentas from mid-gestation to near term were collected from wild individuals and were investigated based on gross morphology, histology, immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy.

Yolk sac mesenchymal progenitor cells from New World mice (Necromys lasiurus) with multipotent differential potential.

Fetal membranes are abundant, ethically acceptable and readily accessible sources of stem cells. In particular, the yolk sac is a source of cell lineages that do not express MHCs and are mainly free from immunological incompatibles when transferred to a recipient. Although data are available especially for hematopoietic stem cells in mice and human, whereas other cell types and species are dramatically underrepresented.

Development and morphology of the inverted yolk sac in the guinea pig (Cavia porcellus).

Although the guinea pig is an important animal model for human placentation, aspects of fetal nutrition are not fully understood, especially in regard to the yolk sac that is regarded to be essential for early development of the embryo. We investigated differentiation by means of histology, histochemistry, immunohistochemistry, and transmission electron microscopy. Data suggest that the guinea pig's yolk sac was not sufficiently developed to facilitate substantial fetal nutrition in early pregnancy.

Fetal-maternal interactions in the synepitheliochorial placenta using the eGFP cloned cattle model.

Background: To investigate mechanisms of fetal-maternal cell interactions in the bovine placenta, we developed a model of transgenic enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein (t-eGFP) expressing bovine embryos produced by nuclear transfer (NT) to assess the distribution of fetal-derived products in the bovine placenta. In addition, we searched for male specific DNA in the blood of females carrying in vitro produced male embryos. Our hypothesis is that the bovine placenta is more permeable to fetal-derived products than described elsewhere.

Efficacy of a new tonic containing urea, lactate, polidocanol, and glycyrrhiza inflata root extract in the treatment of a dry, itchy, and subclinically inflamed scalp.

Background/aims: Dry, itchy and inflamed scalp conditions are common and often associated with diseases such as atopic dermatitis or psoriasis. To improve these symptoms, we investigated the efficacy of a new tonic containing the active ingredients urea, lactate, polidocanol, and Glycyrrhiza inflata root extract, containing licochalcone A.

Study Design/methods: 30 subjects with dry and itchy scalp conditions underwent a randomized half-head study for 4 weeks, applying the leave-on tonic three times a week on one side of the scalp.

Morphometric analysis of the placenta in the New World mouse Necromys lasiurus (Rodentia, Cricetidae): a comparison of placental development in cricetids and murids.

Background: Stereology is an established method to extrapolate three-dimensional quantities from two-dimensional images. It was applied to placentation in the mouse, but not yet for other rodents. Herein, we provide the first study on quantitative placental development in a sigmodontine rodent species with relatively similar gestational time.

Conservation of placentation during the tertiary radiation of mammals in South America.

The eutherian placenta is considered to possess great plasticity, but it is not clear how this variation reflects adaptation to different ecological niches. Because South America was isolated for most of the Tertiary, it represents a natural laboratory to examine this question. We here describe placentation in three South American groups: Xenarthra have been part of the fauna from at least the mid-Paleocene whereas caviomorph rodents and Neotropical primates are each derived from a single founder that reached South America in the Eocene and Oligocene, respectively.

A novel sampling method for identification of endogenous skin surface compounds by use of DART-MS and MALDI-MS.

Identification of endogenous skin surface compounds is an intriguing challenge in comparative skin investigations. Notably, this short communication is focused on the analysis of small molecules, e.g.

Placentation in the anteaters Myrmecophaga tridactyla and Tamandua tetradactyla (Eutheria, Xenarthra).

Background: Since Xenarthra are serious candidates for being basal to Eutheria, their characteristics, e.g. the placental system, influence perceptions of evolution.

Development of bovine embryos derived from reproductive techniques.

Assisted reproduction techniques have improved agricultural breeding in the bovine. However, important development steps may differ from the situation in vivo and there is a high mortality rate during the first trimester of gestation. To better understand these events, we investigated the development of embryos and fetal membranes following fixed-time AI (FTAI), IVF and nuclear transfer (NT).

Development of yolk sac inversion in Galea spixii and Cavia porcellus (Rodentia, Caviidae).

Caviomorph development includes an inverted yolk sac. Since principle processes are not understood, we investigated its differentiation in Galea and re-examined material from the guinea pig. Galea showed the typical caviomorph conditions in blastocyst development and the nature of the definitive yolk sac, formed of the visceral layer that became villous, proliferative, vascularized and attached to the uterus and placenta.