Abstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic affected people at all ages. Whereas pregnant women seemed to have a worse course of disease than age-matched non-pregnant women, the risk of feto-placental infection is low. Using a cohort of 66 COVID-19-positive women in late pregnancy, we correlated clinical parameters with disease severity, placental histopathology, and the expression of viral entry and Interferon-induced transmembrane (IFITM) antiviral transcripts. All newborns were negative for SARS-CoV-2. None of the demographic parameters or placental histopathological characteristics were associated with disease severity. The fetal-maternal transfer ratio for IgG against the N or S viral proteins was commonly less than one, as recently reported. We found that the expression level of placental ACE2, but not TMPRSS2 or Furin, was higher in women with severe COVID-19. Placental expression of IFITM1 and IFITM3, which have been implicated in antiviral response, was higher in participants with severe disease. We also showed that IFITM3 protein expression, which localized to early and late endosomes, was enhanced in severe COVID-19. Our data suggest an association between disease severity and placental SARS-CoV-2 processing and antiviral pathways, implying a role for these proteins in placental response to SARS-CoV-2.
Highlights
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic affected people at all ages
We found that placental mRNA expression of IFITM1 and IFITM3 was upregulated in participants with severe disease when compared to asymptomatic/mild COVID-19-positive pregnant women (Fig. 4A)
Whereas our data support the prevailing conclusion that there are no specific pathological lesions that characterize placentas from COVID19-infected women, it is clear that reporting bias, lack of controls, and insufficient longitudinal analyses limits our ability to decipher the effect of SARS-CoV-2 infection on placental histomorphology
Summary
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic affected people at all ages. Whereas pregnant women seemed to have a worse course of disease than age-matched non-pregnant women, the risk of feto-placental infection is low. Whereas the percentage of pregnant women infected by SARS-CoV-2 might be similar to that of non-pregnant women, the impact of COVID-19 on gravid symptomatic women has been greater than on age-matched non-pregnant women, with more frequent admissions to intensive care units, dependence on ventilatory and circulatory support, and even d eaths[1,2,3,4]. This increased risk of maternal complications is reminiscent of the risk from influenza or other SARS epidemics[5,6,7]. IFITM proteins are expressed in epithelial cells and protect them from coronavirus r eplication[48,49,50,51]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
