Innate Immune Mechanisms to Protect Against Infection at the Human Decidual-Placental Interface

During pregnancy, the placenta forms the anatomical barrier between the mother and developing fetus. Infectious agents can potentially breach the placental barrier resulting in pathogenic transmission from mother to fetus. Innate immune responses, orchestrated by maternal and fetal cells at the deci...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Frontiers in immunology 2020-09, Vol.11, p.2070-2070
Main Authors: Hoo, Regina, Nakimuli, Annettee, Vento-Tormo, Roser
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
decidua
Decidua - immunology
Disease Models, Animal
Female
Humans
Immunity, Innate
Immunology
Infections - immunology
Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical
innate immunity
Placenta - immunology
Pregnancy
trophoblast
uterine-placental interface
vertical transmission
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Summary:During pregnancy, the placenta forms the anatomical barrier between the mother and developing fetus. Infectious agents can potentially breach the placental barrier resulting in pathogenic transmission from mother to fetus. Innate immune responses, orchestrated by maternal and fetal cells at the decidual-placental interface, are the first line of defense to avoid vertical transmission. Here, we outline the anatomy of the human placenta and uterine lining, the decidua, and discuss the potential capacity of pathogen pattern recognition and other host defense strategies present in the innate immune cells at the placental-decidual interface. We consider major congenital infections that access the placenta from hematogenous or decidual route. Finally, we highlight the challenges in studying human placental responses to pathogens and vertical transmission using current experimental models and identify gaps in knowledge that need to be addressed. We further propose novel experimental strategies to address such limitations.
ISSN:1664-3224
1664-3224
DOI:10.3389/fimmu.2020.02070