We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress hp
Sign In
Advertise with Us
GLOBE SCIENTIFIC, LLC

Download Mobile App




Profiling of Blood Transcriptome Predicts Complications in Pregnancies

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 15 Apr 2019
Researchers have proposed profiling of the blood transcriptome as a method to predict complications in pregnancy that might be experienced by women with systemic lupus erythematosus.

Systemic lupus erythematosus carries an increased risk of pregnancy complications, including preeclampsia and fetal adverse outcomes. More...
To identify the underlying molecular mechanisms responsible for this risk, investigators at Weill Cornell Medicine (New York, NY, USA) longitudinally profiled the blood transcriptome of 92 lupus patients and 43 healthy women during pregnancy and postpartum and performed multicolor flow cytometry in a subset of them.

The transcriptome is the set of all RNA molecules in a cell or a population of cells. It is sometimes used to refer to all RNAs, or just mRNA, depending on the particular experiment. It differs from the exome in that it includes only those RNA molecules found in a specified cell population, and usually includes the amount or concentration of each RNA molecule in addition to the molecular identities. Since it includes all mRNA transcripts in the cell, the transcriptome reflects the genes that are being actively expressed at any given time.

The investigators also profiled 25 healthy women undergoing assisted reproductive technology to monitor transcriptional changes around the time of embryo implantation.

Results indicated that during healthy pregnancy there was a sustained down-regulation of multiple immune signatures, including interferon and plasma cells. These changes appeared early after embryo implantation and were mirrored in uncomplicated lupus pregnancies. Patients with preeclampsia displayed early up-regulation of neutrophil signatures that correlated with expansion of immature neutrophils.

Lupus pregnancies with fetal complications carried the highest interferon and plasma cell signatures as well as activated CD4+ T-cell counts. Therefore, blood immunomonitoring revealed that both healthy and uncomplicated lupus pregnancies exhibited early and sustained transcriptional modulation of lupus-related signatures. Lack of this modulation was associated with adverse outcomes.

"Overall, we have identified significant changes in immune pathways during healthy pregnancy and found that failure to modulate them properly is associated with complications in pregnant lupus patients," said senior author Dr. Virginia Pascual, professor of pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine. "Our findings provide a framework for future studies aimed at developing therapeutic strategies to improve health outcomes for mothers with lupus and their offspring."

The work was published in the April 8, 2019, online edition of the Journal of Experimental Medicine.

Related Links:
Weill Cornell Medicine


Gold Member
Quantitative POC Immunoassay Analyzer
EASY READER+
Serological Pipet Controller
PIPETBOY GENIUS
New
Automatic Hematology Analyzer
LABAS F9000
New
Drug Test Kit
DrugCheck 3000
Read the full article by registering today, it's FREE! It's Free!
Register now for FREE to LabMedica.com and get access to news and events that shape the world of Clinical Laboratory Medicine.
  • Free digital version edition of LabMedica International sent by email on regular basis
  • Free print version of LabMedica International magazine (available only outside USA and Canada).
  • Free and unlimited access to back issues of LabMedica International in digital format
  • Free LabMedica International Newsletter sent every week containing the latest news
  • Free breaking news sent via email
  • Free access to Events Calendar
  • Free access to LinkXpress new product services
  • REGISTRATION IS FREE AND EASY!
Click here to Register








Channels

Hematology

view channel
Image: CitoCBC is the world first cartridge-based CBC to be granted CLIA Waived status by FDA (Photo courtesy of CytoChip)

Disposable Cartridge-Based Test Delivers Rapid and Accurate CBC Results

Complete Blood Count (CBC) is one of the most commonly ordered lab tests, crucial for diagnosing diseases, monitoring therapies, and conducting routine health screenings. However, more than 90% of physician... Read more

Immunology

view channel
Image: A simple blood test could replace surgical biopsies for early detecion of heart transplant rejection (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

Blood Test Detects Organ Rejection in Heart Transplant Patients

Following a heart transplant, patients are required to undergo surgical biopsies so that physicians can assess the possibility of organ rejection. Rejection happens when the recipient’s immune system identifies... Read more

Pathology

view channel
These images illustrate how precision oncology Organ Chips recapitulate individual patients’ responses to chemotherapy (Photo courtesy of Wyss Institute at Harvard University)

Cancer Chip Accurately Predicts Patient-Specific Chemotherapy Response

Esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC), one of the two primary types of esophageal cancer, ranks as the sixth leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide and currently lacks effective targeted therapies.... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2025 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.