Tetanus vaccination with a dissolving microneedle patch confers protective immune responses in pregnancy

Pregnancy induces unique changes in maternal immune responses and metabolism. Drastic physiologic adaptations, in an intricately coordinated fashion, allow the maternal body to support the healthy growth of the fetus. The gut microbiome plays a central role in the regulation of the immune system, metabolism, and resistance to infections. Studies have reported changes in the maternal microbiome in the gut, vagina, and oral cavity during pregnancy; it remains unclear whether/how these changes might be related to maternal immune responses, metabolism, and susceptibility to infections during pregnancy. Our understanding of the concerted adaption of these different aspects of the human physiology to promote a successful pregnant remains limited. Here, we provide a comprehensive documentation and discussion of changes in the maternal microbiome in the gut, oral cavity, and vagina during pregnancy, metabolic changes and complications in the mother and newborn that may be, in part, driven by maternal gut dysbiosis, and, lastly, common infections in pregnancy. This review aims to shed light on how dysregulation of the maternal microbiome may underlie obstetrical metabolic complications and infections.

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Maternal immune status in pregnancy is related to offspring’s immune responses and atopy risk

Allergy ◽

10.1111/j.1398-9995.2011.02587.x ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 66 (8) ◽

pp. 1065-1074 ◽

Cited By ~ 48

Author(s):

G. Herberth ◽

D. Hinz ◽

S. Röder ◽

U. Schlink ◽

U. Sack ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Immune Responses ◽

Immune Status ◽

In Pregnancy

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Decidualization Induces a Secretome Switch in Perivascular Niche Cells of the Human Endometrium

Endocrinology ◽

10.1210/en.2014-1370 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 155 (11) ◽

pp. 4542-4553 ◽

Cited By ~ 52

Author(s):

Keisuke Murakami ◽

Yie Hou Lee ◽

Emma S. Lucas ◽

Yi-Wah Chan ◽

Ruban Peter Durairaj ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Immune Responses ◽

Integral Membrane Protein ◽

Notch Signaling Pathway ◽

Cell Contact ◽

Perivascular Niche ◽

Signature Genes ◽

Undifferentiated State ◽

In Pregnancy

Abstract The endometrial perivascular microenvironment is rich in mesenchymal stem-like cells that express type 1 integral membrane protein Sushi domain containing 2 (SUSD2) but the role of these cells in the decidual transformation of this tissue in pregnancy is unknown. We used an antibody directed against SUSD2 (W5C5) to isolate perivascular (W5C5+) and nonperivascular (W5C5−) fibroblasts from mid-luteal biopsies. We show that SUSD2 expression, and hence the ratio of W5C5+:W5C5− cells, changes in culture depending on cell-cell contact and activation of the Notch signaling pathway. RNA sequencing revealed that cultures derived from W5C5+ progenitor cells remain phenotypically distinct by the enrichment of novel and established endometrial perivascular signature genes. In an undifferentiated state, W5C5+-derived cells produced lower levels of various chemokines and inflammatory modulators when compared with their W5C5− counterparts. This divergence in secretomes was switched and became more pronounced upon decidualization, which transformed perivascular W5C5+ cells into the dominant source of a range of chemokines and cytokines, including leukemia inhibitory factor and chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 7. Our findings suggest that the decidual response is spatially organized at the embryo-maternal interface with differentiating perivascular cells establishing distinct cytokine and chemokine profiles that could potentially direct trophoblast toward maternal vessels and govern local immune responses in pregnancy.

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Differential immune responses in pregnant patients recovered from COVID-19

Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy ◽

10.1038/s41392-021-00703-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Ge Chen ◽

Yiming Zhang ◽

Yaoyao Zhang ◽

Jihui Ai ◽

Bin Yang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Immune Responses ◽

Mononuclear Cells ◽

Pregnant Female ◽

Peripheral Blood Mononuclear ◽

Mait Cells ◽

Reactive Protein ◽

Healthy Donors ◽

Interferon Responses ◽

The Impact ◽

In Pregnancy

AbstractPregnant women are generally more susceptible to viral infection. Although the impact of SARS-CoV-2 in pregnancy remains to be determined, evidence indicates that the risk factors for severe COVID-19 are similar in pregnancy to the general population. Here we systemically analyzed the clinical characteristics of pregnant and non-pregnant female COVID-19 patients who were hospitalized during the same period and found that pregnant patients developed marked lymphopenia and higher inflammation evident by higher C-reactive protein and IL-6. To elucidate the pathways that might contribute to immunopathology or protective immunity against COVID-19 during pregnancy, we applied single-cell mRNA sequencing to profile peripheral blood mononuclear cells from four pregnant and six non-pregnant female patients after recovery along with four pregnant and three non-pregnant healthy donors. We found normal clonal expansion of T cells in the pregnant patients, heightened activation and chemotaxis in NK, NKT, and MAIT cells, and differential interferon responses in the monocyte compartment. Our data present a unique feature in both innate and adaptive immune responses in pregnant patients recovered from COVID-19.

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Decidual immune response following COVID-19 during pregnancy varies by timing of maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection

10.1101/2021.11.20.469369 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Lillian J Juttukonda ◽

Elisha M Wachman ◽

Jeffery Boateng ◽

Mayuri Jain ◽

Yoel Benarroch ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Immune Response ◽

T Cells ◽

Immune Responses ◽

Nk Cells ◽

Control Group ◽

Decidua Basalis ◽

Tnf Α ◽

Show Evidence ◽

Negative Controls ◽

In Pregnancy

While COVID-19 infection during pregnancy is common, fetal transmission is rare, suggesting that intrauterine mechanisms form an effective blockade against SARS-CoV-2. Key among these is the decidual immune environment of the placenta. We hypothesized that decidual leukocytes are altered by maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnancy and that this decidual immune resonse is shaped by the timing of infection during gestation. To address this hypothesis, we collected decidua basalis tissues at delivery from women with symptomatic COVID-19 during second (2nd Tri COVID, n=8) or third trimester (3rd Tri COVID, n=8) and SARS-CoV-2-negative controls (Control, n=8). Decidual natural killer (NK) cells, macrophages and T cells were evaluated using quantitative microscopy, and pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokine mRNA expression was evaluated using quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR (qRT-PCR). When compared with the Control group, decidual tissues from 3rd Tri COVID exhibited significantly increased macrophages, NK cells and T cells, whereas 2nd Tri COVID only had significantly increased T cells. In evaluating decidual cytokine expression, we noted that IL-6, IL-8, IL-10 and TNF-α were significantly correlated with macrophage cell abundance. However, in 2nd Tri COVID tissues, there was significant downregulation of IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and TNF-α. Taken together, these results suggest innate and adaptive immune responses are present at the maternal-fetal interface in maternal SARS-CoV-2 infections late in pregnancy, and that infections earlier in pregnancy show evidence of a resolving immune response. Further studies are warranted to characterize the full scope of intrauterine immune responses in pregnancies affected by maternal COVID-19.

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