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Innate Immune System at the Maternal–Fetal Interface: Mechanisms of Disease and Targets of Therapy in Pregnancy Syndromes
Author(s) -
Triggianese Paola,
Perricone Carlo,
Chimenti Maria Sole,
De Carolis Caterina,
Perricone Roberto
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
american journal of reproductive immunology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.071
H-Index - 97
eISSN - 1600-0897
pISSN - 1046-7408
DOI - 10.1111/aji.12509
Subject(s) - pregnancy , innate immune system , immune system , abortion , immunology , preeclampsia , medicine , hellp syndrome , fetus , intrauterine growth restriction , disease , immunity , pathogenesis , bioinformatics , biology , genetics
The maternal–fetal interface is an immunologically unique site that allows the tolerance to the allogenic fetus and maintains host defense against possible pathogens. Balanced immune responses are required for the maintenance of successful pregnancy. It has been demonstrated that innate immune disturbances may be responsible for some adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preeclampsia ( PE ); hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, low platelets ( HELLP ) syndrome; intrauterine growth restriction ( IUGR ); and recurrent spontaneous abortion ( RSA ). Observational studies suggest that immunomodulatory treatments in pregnancy‐specific complications may improve both the hematological/biochemical features in the mother and the perinatal outcomes. The following review will discuss how recent and relevant findings in the field of the innate immunity have advanced our understanding of the role of inflammation and innate immune system in the pathogenesis of pregnancy failure and will discuss the therapeutic outcomes of the existing studies and clinical trials in light of these new insights.