Objective: Our purpose was to investigate the three-dimensional architecture of placental villi from normal and growth-restricted fetuses and relate findings to umbilical artery blood flow velocity waveforms.
Study Design: Placentas from term (n = 15) and preterm (n = 5) appropriately grown and term (n = 9) and preterm (n = 7) growth-restricted fetuses (birth weight < 10th percentile) were examined to determine the number of arteries per stem villus and the three-dimensional configuration of the villous trees and their vessels. Umbilical blood flow before delivery was assessed by Doppler ultrasonography. The effects of age and growth restriction were determined by two-way analyses of variance.
Results: Growth restriction was associated with reduced large vessel wall thickness (p < or = 0.05) but no reduction in the number of these vessels per stem villus. The volumes and surface areas of intermediate and terminal villi were reduced (p < or = 0.001), especially in preterm growth-restricted cases, where a marked reduction in diastolic blood flow velocity was observed in the umbilical artery.
Conclusions: Reduced villous development may contribute to abnormal umbilical artery blood flood flow, as assessed by Doppler ultrasonography, in some cases of intrauterine growth restriction.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0002-9378(95)90566-9 | DOI Listing |
Cell Stem Cell
January 2025
Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA. Electronic address:
Tissue-engineered vascular conduits (TEVCs) are a promising blood vessel replacement. In a recent publication in Cell Stem Cell, Park et al. developed TEVCs comprised of decellularized human umbilical arteries lined with shear-trained, human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived endothelial cells (ECs) that resisted thrombosis and exhibited patency upon grafting into the rat inferior vena cava (IVC).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTheranostics
January 2025
Department of Vascular Surgery, Zhongshan Hospital Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, PR China.
Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol
January 2025
Johns Hopkins Center for Fetal Therapy, Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Objective: To determine if the resolution of fetal growth discordance after laser surgery in pregnancies with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) and coexisting selective fetal growth restriction (sFGR) can be predicted by estimated fetal weight (EFW) discordance recorded prior to the development of TTTS (pre-TTTS).
Methods: This was a single-center, retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data on monochorionic twins with concurrent TTTS and sFGR that underwent laser surgery and had available growth ultrasound records from a pre-TTTS ultrasound evaluation. Maternal demographics, pregnancy characteristics and birth outcomes were compared between three outcome groups: double twin survival with resolved sFGR determined by birth weight discordance (BWD) < 20%; double twin survival with ongoing sFGR determined by BWD ≥ 20%; and single or double fetal demise after laser surgery.
Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol
January 2025
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA.
Objective: To compare the accuracy of four published reference standards for the umbilical artery pulsatility index (UA-PI) in predicting small-for-gestational age (SGA), adverse neonatal outcomes and obstetric complications in pregnancies at risk for fetal growth restriction.
Methods: This was a secondary analysis of a prospective study of singleton pregnancies that underwent fetal growth assessment by ultrasound between 26 and 36 weeks' gestation. Pregnancies with estimated fetal weight or abdominal circumference < 20 percentile with UA-PI measurements available were included.
Cardiovasc Ther
January 2025
Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Third Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Shanxi Bethune Hospital, Shanxi Academy of Medical Sciences, Tongji Shanxi Hospital, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province 030032, China.
This research is aimed at unravelling the intricate relationship between transient receptor potential vanilloid 6 (TRPV6), protein kinase A (PKA), uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2), and atherosclerosis. By shedding light on the role of the TRPV6/PKA/UCP2 pathway in inhibiting inflammatory response and cell apoptosis in coronary atherosclerotic plaques, this study provides valuable insights into potential therapeutic targets for treating coronary artery disease (CAD). We established animal and cell models of atherosclerosis.
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