Intrauterine transmission of the Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) during early pregnancy has rarely been reported, although vertical transmission has been observed in newborns. Here, we report four cases of spontaneous abortion in women who became infected with CHIKV between the 11th and 17th weeks of pregnancy. Laboratorial confirmation of the infection was conducted by RT-PCR on a urine sample for one case, and the other three were by detection of IgM anti-CHIKV antibodies. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining and an electron microscopy assay allowed us to find histopathological, such as inflammatory infiltrate in the decidua and chorionic villi, as well as areas of calcification, edema and the deposition of fibrinoid material, and ultrastructural changes, such as mitochondria with fewer cristae and ruptured membranes, endoplasmic reticulum with dilated cisterns, dispersed chromatin in the nuclei and the presence of an apoptotic body in case 1. In addition, by immunohistochemistry (IHC), we found a positivity for the anti-CHIKV antibody in cells of the endometrial glands, decidual cells, syncytiotrophoblasts, cytotrophoblasts, Hofbauer cells and decidual macrophages. Electron microscopy also helped in identifying virus-like particles in the aborted material with a diameter of 40-50 nm, which was consistent with the size of CHIKV particles in the literature. Our findings in this study suggest early maternal fetal transmission, adding more evidence on the role of CHIKV in fetal death.

Humans require minute amounts of trace metals to maintain body's normal growth and physiological functions; such elements may also play a vital role in pregnancy and pregnancy outcome. The present study was conducted to assess the role of two trace metals, zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu) in women with history of spontaneous abortion (SAb cases) in comparison to women without such history (controls).

Recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) occurs in 1‑5% of parturients. The sustained therapy and research for RSA is expensive, which is a serious issue faced by both patients and doctors. The aim of the present study was to detect protein expression profiles in the serum of RSA patients and healthy controls, and to identify potential biomarkers for this disease. A 1,000‑protein microarray consisting of a combination of Human L‑507 and L‑493 was used. The microarray data revealed that eight serum protein expression levels were significantly upregulated and 143 proteins were downregulated in RSA patients compared with the healthy controls. ELISA individually validated 5 of these 151 proteins in a larger cohort of patients and control samples, demonstrating a significant decrease in insulin‑like growth factor‑binding protein‑related protein 1 (IFGBP‑rp1)/IGFBP‑7, Dickkopf‑related protein 3 (Dkk3), receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) and angiopoietin‑2 levels in patients with RSA. Sensitivity and specificity analyses were calculated by a receiver operating characteristics curve, and were revealed to be 0.881, 0.823, 0.79 and 0.814, with diagnostic cut‑off points of 95.44 ng/ml for IFGBP‑rp1, 32.84 ng/ml for Dkk3, 147.27 ng/ml for RAGE and 441.40 ng/ml for angiopoietin‑2. The present study indicated that these four proteins were downregulated in RSA samples and may be useful as biomarkers for the prediction and diagnosis of RSA. Subsequent studies in larger‑scale cohorts are required to further validate the diagnostic value of these markers.

We evaluated cytogenetic results occurring with first trimester pregnancy loss, and assessed the type and frequency of chromosomal abnormalities after assisted reproductive treatment (ART) and compared them with a control group. We also compared the rate of chromosomal abnormalities according to infertility causes in ICSI group.

We evaluated the value of copy number variation sequencing (CNV-seq) and quantitative fluorescence (QF)-PCR for analyzing chromosomal abnormalities (CA) in spontaneous abortion specimens.

Recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) is a common complication of pregnancy. Recent studies have demonstrated that the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) might play important roles in establishing and maintaining early pregnancy. In this study, we found that placental AhR protein levels were significantly lower and placental CYP1A1 mRNA levels were higher in unexplained RSA (URSA) patients than in control subjects. The results of immunohistochemical analyzes showed that placental AhR was expressed in syncytiotrophoblast cells and that the level of AhR was markedly lower in these cells in URSA subjects than in control subjects. β-Naphthoflavone (β-NF, an AhR ligand) at 5μM significantly inhibited proliferation and migration in HTR-8/SVneo cells and was associated with the activation of AhR. Moreover, overexpressing AhR in JAR cells significantly increased CYP1A1 mRNA levels and inhibited cell migration. These results indicate that AhR is highly activated in URSA placentas and that the activation of AhR in the placenta might impair trophoblast cell proliferation and migration, possibly leading to the occurrence of URSA.

Recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) is one of the common complication of pregnancy, bringing heavy burden to the patients and their families. The study aimed to explore the lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA network associated with recurrent spontaneous abortion.

Recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) is intractable infertility and can be ameliorated with the use of traditional Chinese medicine preparation, the Wenjing decoction. This study aimed to identify the therapeutic mechanism of Wenjing decoction on specific target proteins involved in RSA.

Dysregulated extravillous trophoblast invasion and proliferation are known to increase the risk of recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA); however, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Herein, in our retrospective observational case-control study we show that villous samples from RSA patients, compared to healthy controls, display reduced succinate dehydrogenase complex iron sulfur subunit (SDHB) DNA methylation, elevated SDHB expression, and reduced succinate levels, indicating that low succinate levels correlate with RSA. Moreover, we find high succinate levels in early pregnant women are correlated with successful embryo implantation. SDHB promoter methylation recruited MBD1 and excluded c-Fos, inactivating SDHB expression and causing intracellular succinate accumulation which mimicked hypoxia in extravillous trophoblasts cell lines JEG3 and HTR8 via the PHD2-VHL-HIF-1α pathway; however, low succinate levels reversed this effect and increased the risk of abortion in mouse model. This study reveals that abnormal metabolite levels inhibit extravillous trophoblast function and highlights an approach for RSA intervention.

An autoimmune cause and related immunological alterations resulting in recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) have been suggested in patients with unknown etiology.

The aim of this study is to investigate a new mechanism that may affect spontaneous abortions (SA): Can long interspersed nuclear element-1 (LINE-1) insertions in embryo cells lead to early SA?

We investigated Q fever infection in Febrile Spontaneous Abortions in women by using a serologic method (Immuno-Fluorescence Assay, IFA) and a molecular method (real-time quantitative PCR, qPCR) in Obstetric-Gynaecology (OB-GYN) services in two hospitals in Algiers. We included in the case group 380 women who experienced Febrile Spontaneous Abortion; the control group comprised 345 women who gave birth without any other infections or complications. Among the 725 women included, antibodies against Coxiella burnetii were detected by IFA in three (03) cases patients; all control group samples were IFA negative. In other hand, only four (04) placental samples among the case group came back with q PCR positive for IS1111 and IS30a too. A relationship between C. burnetii infection and febrile spontaneous abortion exists in OB-GYN services in Algiers.

BACKGROUND Gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC-MS) metabolomics have been deployed to detect novel differential metabolites in cases with recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA). MATERIAL AND METHODS Fifty patients who had recurrent spontaneous abortions (RSAs) and 51 control patients (age, gestational age, and body mass index (BMI) match) were enrolled in this study. Untargeted GC-MS and targeted LC-MS were combined to discover and validate the different metabolomic profiles between groups. Score plots of orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) clearly separated the RSA group from the control group. The variable importance in projection (VIP) generated in OPLS-DA processing represented the contribution to the discrimination of each metabolite ion between groups. Variables with a VIP >1 and P<0.05 were considered to be different variables. We also used MetaboAnalyst 3.0 to analyze the pathway impact of potential metabolite biomarkers. RESULTS Fifty-four metabolites were significantly different between the two groups, as indicated by a VIP >1 and P<0.05. The metabolic pathways involving glycine, serine, threonine (P=0.00529, impact=0.26), beta-alanine (P=0.0284, impact=0.27), and phenylalanine metabolism (P=0.0217, impact=0.17), along with the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle (P=0.0113, impact=0.19) and the glycolysis pathway (P=0.037, impact=0.1) are obviously related to RSA. Verification by LC-MS showed that the concentration of lactic acid in RSA was higher than that in the control group (P<0.05), while the concentration of 5-methoxytryptamine was significantly lower in the RSA group (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS In our study, untargeted GC-MS was used to detect disturbance of metabolism occurs in RSA and targeted LC-MS further was used to show that plasma concentrations of two metabolites (lactic acid and 5-methoxytryptamine) were different in the RSA compared to the control group.

Several studies have examined biological markers during the first trimester to predict the maintenance of a healthy pregnancy. One such marker is kisspeptin, which is encoded by the KISS-1 gene. We aimed to determine whether firsttrimester pregnancy losses were associated with levels of placental KISS-1 expression.

The objectives of this study were to identify loci, positional candidate genes, gene-sets, and pathways associated with spontaneous abortion (SA) in cattle and compare these results with previous human SA studies to determine if cattle are a good SA model for humans. Pregnancy was determined at gestation day 35 for Holstein heifers and cows. Genotypes from 43,984 SNPs of 499 pregnant heifers and 498 pregnant cows that calved at full term (FT) were compared to 62 heifers and 28 cows experiencing SA. A genome-wide association analysis, gene-set enrichment analysis-single nucleotide polymorphism, and ingenuity pathway analysis were used to identify regions, pathways, and master regulators associated with SA in heifers, cows, and a combined population.

Dysregulation of decidual macrophages leads to the occurrence of recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA). However, the role of macrophages in RSA occurrence remains unclear. In this study, we found that the expression of Grim-19 was decreased, and the expression of autophagy related proteins Beclin1, LC3B II/I and BNIP3 was markedly upregulated in decidual macrophages of RSA patients compared with the normal pregnancy group. Furthermore, we demonstrated that downregulation of GRIM-19 increased the expression of autophagy related proteins Beclin1, LC3B II/I, BNIP3 and the proinflammatory cytokines IL1B, IL6 and TNFa in uterine mononuclear cells of GRIM-19+/- mice. The proportion of CD45+CD11b+F4/80+LC3B+ cells in GRIM-19+/- mouse uteri was significantly higher than that in WT mouse uteri. In addition, we confirmed that inhibition of Grim-19 by siRNA enhanced the expression of autophagy related proteins in RAW264.7 cells and THP-1 cells. More importantly, downregulation of Grim-19 in RAW264.7 cells promoted the release of proinflammatory cytokines and promoted phagocytic activity, which could be reversed by autophagy blockade. For THP-1-derived macrophages, the results of RNA-seq suggested that Grim-19 mainly modulates immune and inflammatory-related pathways, leading to cytokine production, and thus contributing to inflammation. Therefore, our data reveal that Grim-19 deficiency influences macrophage function, characterized by enhanced proinflammatory cytokines and phagocytic activity, and this might be regulated by autophagy. This may represent a novel mechanism for the occurrence of RSA.

Trefoil factor 3 (TFF3) gene is an inflammatory mediator expressed in human endometrium during the window of implantation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible genetic association of TFF3 variants in recurrent spontaneous abortion. Women with a history of recurrent spontaneous abortion (n = 164) and healthy pregnant women (n = 143) were genotyped for five TFF3 polymorphisms (rs225439 G/A, rs533093 C/T, rs225361 A/G, rs11701143 T/C and rs77436142 G/C). In addition, haplotypes formed within the gene were analysed. Within the recurrent spontaneous abortion group, women who at some point had given birth and childless women had 4.19 ± 1.75 and 5.34 ± 3.42 consecutive spontaneous abortions, respectively. Women who had experience recurrent spontaneous abortions had a lower allele frequency of the rs11701143 promoter region minor C allele compared with fertile women (0.02 versus 0.05, P = 0.015). Patients with rs225361 AG genotype had significantly more successful pregnancies before spontaneous abortion than those with homozygous AA and GG genotypes (P = 0.014). No significant differences in haplotype frequencies between patients and controls were detected. Possible genetic risk factors identified that might contribute to the pathogenesis of idiopathic recurrent spontaneous abortion were TFF3 gene variants.

Abortion and loss of pregnancy in the first trimester may affect maternal mortality and morbidity. This study aimed to determine the severity of post-abortion stress in spontaneous abortion, induced abortion, and Forensic Medical Center (FMC) referral abortions immediately after abortion and after 1 month of follow-up in Shiraz, Iran, in 2018.

The purpose of this study is to validate the diagnosis of spontaneous abortion (SA) recorded in the Danish National Registry of Patients (DNRP).

Estrogen is one of the most important reproductive steroidal hormones and plays a critical role in the maintenance of pregnancy, and its function is mediated by estrogen receptor 1(ESR1). The polymorphisms of ESR1 were involved in recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA); however, the association between ESR1 polymorphisms and RSA remains controversial. The present meta-analysis was aimed to clarify the association between ESR1 PvuII (-397C/T, rs2234693) and XbaI (-351A/G, rs9340799) polymorphisms and the risk of RSA.