Browsing by Subject "Amnion"

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    Analysis of cell-cell junctions in human amnion and chorionic plate affected by chorioamnionitis
    (2016) Licini, Caterina; Tossetta, Giovanni; Avellini, Chiara; Ciarmela, Pasquapina; Lorenzi, Teresa; Toti, Paolo; Gesuita, Rosaria; Voltolini, Chiara; Petraglia, Felice; Castellucci, Mario; Marzioni, Daniela
    Chorioamnionitis is an acute inflammatory reaction associated with the premature rupture of the fetal membranes. It is caused mainly by invasion of bacteria from the vaginal tract that can penetrate the intact membranes and invade the amnion cavity and the decidua. Tight junctions (TJ) and adherent junctions (AJ) are intercellular junctions crucial for epithelia adhesion and permeability regulation in a wide variety of tissues and organs. Our aim is to investigate if TJ and AJ molecules are involved in human chorioamnionitis. We studied the protein expression (by immunohistochemistry and western blotting) and the mRNA levels (by RT-PCR) of some junction proteins such as Zonula Occludens-1 (ZO-1), occludin, VE-cadherin and βcatenin in fetal membranes from women with chorioamnionitis compared to those membranes derived from idiopathic pregnancies. Western blotting and immunohistochemical data established that occludin expression was decreased in amnion with chorioamnionitis compared to amnion from idiopathic pregnancies. Samples tested for ZO-1, VEcadherin and β-catenin (proteins and mRNAs) showed no differences between idiopathic and pathological membranes. One of the most relevant results is the decrease of occludin in membranes with chorioamnionitis. Since we have previously demonstrated that some cytokines, particularly elevated in the chorioamnionitis, cause the disruption of TJs in placental villi, we suggest that the decrease of occludin in amnion may be the first change that leads to the rupture of the amniotic membrane in this pathology.
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    The amniotic membrane as a source of stem cells
    (Murcia : F. Hernández, 2010) Insausti, Carmen L.; Blanquer Blanquer, Miguel; Bleda, Patricia; Iniesta, Paqui; Majado Martínez, Mª Juliana; Castellanos Escrig, Gregorio; Moraleda Jiménez, José María
    Cellular therapy has emerged as a new potential tool for curing a wide range of degenerative diseases and tissue necrosis. Embryonic stem cells possess potential for differentiation into a wide range of cell lineages, but the ethical issues associated with establishment of this human cell line have to be resolved prior to any use. The bone marrow (BM) is the usual source of adult stem cells for hematopoietic stem cell transplants and cellular therapy, but the BM harvest is a surgical procedure that requires general anesthesia or sedation, and there seems to be a reduction of the proliferative potential and differentiation capacity of the marrow mesenchymal stem cells in older donors. For these reasons there is an increasing interest in other sources of stem cells from adult and fetal tissues. The amniotic membrane (AM) or amnion is a tissue of particular interest because its cells possess characteristics of stem cells with multipotent differentiation ability, and because of low immunogenicity and easy procurement from the placenta, which is a discarded tissue after parturition, thus avoiding the current controversies associated with the use of human embryonic stem cells. Therefore, amniotic membrane has been proposed as a good candidate to be used in cellular therapy and regenerative medicine.