Effects of excess thromboxane A2 on placental development and nutrient transporters in a Mus musculus model of fetal growth restriction

Biol Reprod. 2018 May 1;98(5):695-704. doi: 10.1093/biolre/ioy006.

Abstract

Hypertensive disease of pregnancy (HDP) with placental insufficiency is the most common cause of fetal growth restriction (FGR) in the developed world. Despite the known negative consequences of HDP both to the mother and fetus, little is known about the longitudinal placental changes that occur as HDP progresses in pregnancy. This is because longitudinal sampling of human placentae during each gestation is impossible. Therefore, using a mouse model of thromboxane A2-analog infusion to mimic human HDP in the last trimester, we calculated placental efficiencies based on fetal and placental weights; quantified spongiotrophoblast and labyrinth thicknesses and vascular density within these layers; examined whether hypoxia signaling pathway involving vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) and its receptors (VEGFR1, VEGFR2) and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) contributed to vascular change; and examined nutrient transporter abundance including glucose transporters 1 and 3 (GLUT1, GLUT3), neutral amino acid transporters 1, 2, and 4 (SNAT1, SNAT2, and SNAT4), fatty acid transporters 2 and 4 (FATP2, FATP4), and fatty acid translocase (CD36) from embryonic day 15.5 to 19 in a 20-day C57Bl/6J mouse gestation. We conclude that early-to-mid gestation hypertensive placentae show compensatory mechanisms to preserve fetal growth by increasing placental efficiencies and maintaining abundance of important nutrient transporters. As placental vascular network diminishes over late hypertension, placental efficiency diminishes and fetal growth fails. Neither hypoxia signaling pathway nor MMPs mediated the vascular diminution in this model. Hypertensive placentae surprisingly exhibit a sex-differential expression of nutrient transporters in late gestation despite showing fetal growth failure in both sexes.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • 15-Hydroxy-11 alpha,9 alpha-(epoxymethano)prosta-5,13-dienoic Acid / pharmacology*
  • Amino Acid Transport Systems, Neutral / metabolism*
  • Animals
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Fatty Acid Transport Proteins / metabolism*
  • Female
  • Fetal Growth Retardation / metabolism*
  • Glucose Transport Proteins, Facilitative / metabolism*
  • Matrix Metalloproteinases / metabolism
  • Mice
  • Placenta / drug effects*
  • Placenta / metabolism
  • Placentation / drug effects*
  • Pregnancy
  • Signal Transduction / drug effects
  • Thromboxane A2 / metabolism*
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / metabolism
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-1 / metabolism
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-2 / metabolism

Substances

  • Amino Acid Transport Systems, Neutral
  • Fatty Acid Transport Proteins
  • Glucose Transport Proteins, Facilitative
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A
  • Thromboxane A2
  • 15-Hydroxy-11 alpha,9 alpha-(epoxymethano)prosta-5,13-dienoic Acid
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-1
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-2
  • Matrix Metalloproteinases