Abstract
Placental malaria is a common clinical complication during pregnancy and is associated with abortion, premature delivery, intrauterine growth retardation and low birth weight. The present study was designed to delineate the underlying mechanism of placental pathology during malarial infection with special reference to oxidative stress and apoptosis. Experimentally, pregnant BALB/c mice were infected with Plasmodium berghei infected red blood cells on gestation day 10. The presence of malarial infection in placenta was confirmed by histopathological studies. It was observation that infected placenta had plugged placental sinusoids with parasitized red blood cells and malarial pigments. Interestingly, we found significant increase in the level of malondialdehyde, the index of oxidative stress and decreased activity of catalase, the antioxidant in infected placenta. Furthermore, in infected placenta the oxidative stress mediated apoptosis was determined by DNA fragmentation assay, ethidium bromide/acridine orange staining and caspase activity. It was observed that oxidative stress begin after second day of malarial infection. Interestingly, it was observed that there was down regulation of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 and up regulation of pro-apoptotic protein Bax in infected placenta, suggesting the involvement of mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis which was further confirmed by activation of caspase 9. However, no change in the expression of Fas gene and caspase 8 activity, indicated the absence of death receptor pathway. Thus, it can be concluded that the placental pathology during malarial infection is mediated by mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis occurring due to augmented lipid peroxidation which may in turn jeopardise the materno-fetal relationship.
Highlights
Malaria causes about 2.7 million deaths annually worldwide, most of which are in children and pregnant women [1]
It can be concluded that the placental pathology during malarial infection is mediated by mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis occurring due to augmented lipid peroxidation which may in turn jeopardise the materno-fetal relationship
The antigenic stimulation activates the immune system of the body thereby causing release of reactive oxygen species (ROS) [28,29]
Summary
Malaria causes about 2.7 million deaths annually worldwide, most of which are in children and pregnant women [1]. Despite all the efforts made to control malaria among pregnant women in endemic areas, malaria remains a significant cause of maternal and infant mortality and morbidity. In sub-Saharan Africa, the World hardest hit area by malaria, the infection is estimated to cause 4,00,000 cases of severe maternal anaemia and about 2,00,000 infant deaths [2,3,4]. Malarial infection caused by Plasmodium falciparum is more severe and frequent in pregnant women than in non-pregnant women. It is primigravidae who are more susceptible to the infection than multigravidae [5]. The non- immune, primigravidae are usually the most affected in areas of high transmission where 20–40% of all babies have a low birth weight whereas, in areas of low transmission primigravidae and multigravidae are affected [11,12]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
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.
