Introduction: Embryo implantation is a tightly regulated process, critical for a successful pregnancy. After attachment of the blastocyst to the surface epithelium of the endometrium trophoblast migrate from the trophectoderm and invade into the stromal component of endometrium. Alterations on either process will lead to implantation failure or miscarriage. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as benzene induce pregnancy complications, including preterm birth and miscarriages. The mechanism of this effect is unknown. The objective of this study was to elucidate the impact of benzene metabolite, Hydroquinone, on trophoblast function. We tested the hypothesis that Hydroquinone activates the Aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) pathway modulating trophoblast migration and invasion.
Methods: First-trimester trophoblast cells (Sw.71) were treated with hydroquinone (6 and 25 μM). Trophoblast migration and invasion was evaluated using a 3D invasion/migration model. Gene expression was quantified by q-PCR and Western blot analysis.
Results: Hydroquinone impairs trophoblast migration and invasion. This loss is associated with the activation of the AhR pathway which reduced the expression of Twist1and IFITM1. IFITM1 overexpression can rescue impaired trophoblast migration.
Discussion: Our study highlights that hydroquinone treatment induces the activation of the AhR pathway in trophoblast cells, which impairs trophoblast invasion and migration. We postulate that activation of the AhR pathway in trophoblast suppress Twist1 and a subsequent IFITM1. Thus, the AhR-Twist1-IFITM1 axis represent a critical pathway involved in the regulation of trophoblast migration and it is sensitive to benzene exposure. These findings provide crucial insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying pregnancy complications induced by air pollution.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.placenta.2024.07.315 | DOI Listing |
Life (Basel)
December 2024
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
In preeclampsia (PE), impaired trophoblast proliferation and differentiation are thought to cause abnormal placentation and subsequent clinical manifestations of the disease, i.e., hypertension, proteinuria, and end-organ damage.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVirology
December 2024
Department of Immunology, Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, USA; Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA; Institute on Infectious Diseases, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA. Electronic address:
Zika virus (ZIKV) infection during pregnancy can cause congenital Zika virus syndrome (CZV), including fetal growth restriction and death. In the developing placenta, trophoblast cells respond to epidermal growth factor (EGF) to migrate into the decidua to facilitate implantation and fetal development. EGF activates the Akt protein kinase, a master regulator of trophoblast cell migration.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFiScience
December 2024
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang 110004, P.R. China.
Preeclampsia (PE) is a multifactorial disorder of pregnancy, characterized by new-onset gestational hypertension. High-throughput mRNA sequencing (RNA-seq) was performed to analyze the gene expression patterns in placentas from patients with early-onset PE (EOPE). PR domain zinc-finger protein 1 (PRDM1) expression increased in the chorionic villi and placental basal plate from patients with PE and nitro--arginine methyl ester (L-NAME)-treated rats.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFExp Cell Res
January 2025
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150001, Heilongjiang, China. Electronic address:
Insufficient trophoblast cell infiltration is implicated in the progression of preeclampsia (PE). The immunoglobulin superfamily member 8 (IGSF8) has been shown to promote cell migration, invasion, and epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT). However, the specific impact of IGSF8 on trophoblast cells in PE has not been definitively demonstrated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Rep
January 2025
Department of Dermatology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka, 812-8582, Japan.
Extramammary Paget disease (EMPD) is a rare skin cancer that typically occurs in the anogenital area of older people. Since efficacy of treatments for metastatic or unresectable EMPD remains poor, development of a novel therapeutic approach is strongly desired. However, the lack of EMPD models has hampered investigation of EMPD.
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