AI Article Synopsis

  • Preterm birth is a significant cause of neonatal death and is often triggered by infections that ascend from the lower genital tract, affecting the placenta and fetus.
  • The study investigates the cervical mucus plug (CMP) from healthy pregnancies to identify its antimicrobial properties against group B streptococcus (GBS), a bacteria linked to preterm birth.
  • Although the antimicrobial peptides found in CMPs are not concentrated enough to kill GBS directly, they can activate leukocytes, enhancing the body's ability to kill bacteria, which suggests the CMP plays a role in preventing infections that could lead to preterm birth.

Article Abstract

Preterm birth is a leading cause of neonatal mortality and lacks an effective therapy. Ascending microbial infections from the lower genital tract lead to infection of the placenta, amniotic fluid, and fetus causing preterm birth or stillbirth. Directly in the path of an ascending infection is the cervical mucus plug (CMP), a dense mucoid structure in the cervical canal with potential antimicrobial properties. In this study, we aimed to define the components of CMP responsible for antimicrobial activity against a common lower genital tract organism associated with preterm birth and stillbirths, namely, group B streptococcus (GBS). Using a quantitative proteomic approach, we identified antimicrobial factors in CMPs that were collected from healthy human pregnancies. However, we noted that the concentration of antimicrobial peptides present in the human CMPs were insufficient to directly kill GBS, and antimicrobial activity, when observed, was due to antibiotics retained in the CMPs. Despite this insufficiency, CMP proteins were able to activate leukocytes in whole blood resulting in increased rates of bacterial killing, suggesting a role for the CMP in enhancing complement-mediated killing or leukocyte activation. This study provides new insight into how the human CMP may limit ascending bacterial infection.

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Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5913629PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/infdis/jiy076DOI Listing

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