Expression of the Costimulatory Molecule B7-H4 in the Decidua and Placental Tissues in Patients with Placental Abruption.

B7 homolog 4 protein (B7-H4), a member of the B7 family, is a immunomodulatory membrane protein. The aim of the study was to evaluate the expression of this protein in the decidua and placental tissues in case of placental abruption (PA) compared to cases of retained placental tissue (RPT) and controls. Tissue samples were obtained from 47 patients with PA, 60 patients with RPT, and 41 healthy controls. The samples were stained for B7-H4 expression, analyzed by an expert pathologist, and a semi-quantitative scale was applied. A statistical analysis revealed that the expression of B7-H4 was significantly higher in the decidua in PA samples compared to samples from patients with RPT (p-value < 0.001) and healthy controls (p-value < 0.001). The expression of B7-H4 in the placental chorionic villus was significantly higher in PA samples in relation to samples from healthy controls (p-value < 0.001) but not in relation to RPT samples (p-value = 0.0853). This finding suggests that B7-H4 might play an important role in mechanisms restoring reproductive tract homeostasis. Further research is necessary in regard to the role of B7-H4 in PA.

Molecular Changes on Maternal-Fetal Interface in Placental Abruption-A Systematic Review.

Placental abruption is the separation of the placenta from the lining of the uterus before childbirth. It is an infrequent perinatal complication with serious after-effects and a marked risk of maternal and fetal mortality. Despite the fact that numerous placental abruption risk factors are known, the pathophysiology of this issue is multifactorial and not entirely clear. The aim of this review was to examine the current state of knowledge concerning the molecular changes on the maternal-fetal interface occurring in placental abruption. Only original research articles describing studies published in English until the 15 March 2021 were considered eligible. Reviews, book chapters, case studies, conference papers and opinions were excluded. The systematic literature search of PubMed/MEDLINE and Scopus databases identified 708 articles, 22 of which were analyzed. The available evidence indicates that the disruption of the immunological processes on the maternal-fetal interface plays a crucial role in the pathophysiology of placental abruption. The features of chronic non-infectious inflammation and augmented immunological cytotoxic response were found to be present in placental abruption samples in the reviewed studies. Various molecules participate in this process, with only a few being examined. More advanced research is needed to fully explain this complicated process.

Platelet alloimmunization is associated with low grade chronic histiocytic intervillositis - A new link to a rare placental lesion?

INTRODUCTION: Maternal alloimmunization against human platelet antigen (HPA)-1a has been implied to mediate both reduced birth weight and chronic placental inflammation. Fetal growth restriction is associated with different types of chronic inflammation in the placenta, mainly chronic histiocytic intervillositis and chronic villitis. The aim of this prospective study was to do a systematic examination of placentas from HPA-1a alloimmunized pregnancies, with focus on the histopathological and immunohistochemical diagnosis of variants of chronic inflammation. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In a Polish-Norwegian study, 48 placentas were examined. The histopathology of placentas from 27 HPA-1a immunized women was compared with 21 placentas from non-immunized HPA-1a negative women (controls). In the group of alloimmunized women, ten received antenatal intravenous immunoglobulin G (IVIg). Tissue sections from formalin fixed paraffin embedded placental tissue were stained with hematoxylin and eosin and microscopically examined with focus on various types of chronic placental inflammations. RESULTS: Chronic histiocytic intervillositis was observed in 40.7% of placentas from HPA-1a alloimmunized pregnancies, compared to none in the control group (p = 0.001). Chronic villitis of unknown etiology was more frequently found in the alloimmunized group, however this difference was not statistically significant. Maternal administration of IVIg did not seem to protect against chronic inflammatory lesions. DISCUSSION: Placentas with detectable maternal anti-HPA-1a antibodies are associated with highly increased risk of low-grade chronic histiocytic intervillositis.

Peroxiredoxin-1 as a prognostic factor in patients with ovarian cancer.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: Peroxiredoxin-1 (PRDX-1) belongs to a family of antioxidant enzymes and has proved to be a versatile molecule regulating cell growth, differentiation and apoptosis. PRDX1-regulated signaling pathways play an important role in the progression and metastasis of human tumours, especially in breast, esophageal and lung cancers. The aim of the study was to evaluate the expression of PRDX-1 in ovarian cancer tissues, and to test the clinical value of PRDX-1 as a prognostic factor in this malignancy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: PRDX-1 expression was assessed by automated immunohistochemistry in tumours taken from 55 patients with ovarian cancer during primary surgery. Specimen were formalin-fixed and preserved in paraffin-embedded blocks. The results were correlated with clinicopathological data. RESULTS: A high expression of PRDX-1 was observed in 20% of cases, and was associated with worse compliance to chemotherapy protocol (P<0.002), worse response to chemotherapy (P<0.04), and higher levels of CA 125 after the 1st line treatment (P<0.004). PRDX-1 positive subjects had a significantly lower 5-year disease-free survival (9.1% vs. 42.6%, P<0.01) and a lower 5-year overall survival (9.1% vs. 56.7%; P<0.002). Multivariate analysis showed that a high expression of PRDX-1 is an independent prognostic factor of poor, overall survival (P<0.002) and a disease-free survival (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Results of the study show that PRDX-1 expression in tumour tissues can be another biomarker of prognosis in patients with ovarian cancer.

Granulomatous inflammation of dura mater--a rare side effect after application of hemostatic and insulation materials in case of two-stage operation of huge meningioma.

Haemostatic and isolating materials may cause local reactions as a foreign body. The case presented here of intracranial granulomatous lesion pertains to a patient operated in two stages due to a huge meningioma. During the first operation the tumour was partially removed. Because of persistent intraoperative haemorrhage haemostatic flakes of Oxycel and Spongostan were applied locally. In order to cover the lack of the dura, an insulation material--Tachosil was used. Histological examination of the tumour specimens confirmed the preoperative diagnosis of benign meningioma, mainly of the angiomatous subtype. The second stage of operation was performed after 3 months and the meningioma was completely removed, as well as dura mater and meningioma attachment with its oncological margin. The resected dura mater was thickened and histologically showed intensive granulomatous infiltrations and foreign body reactions most likely to Oxycel. Clinically no local and general infection and improper healing was observed after the first and the second treatment stage, but an allergic skin lesions and increased eosinophils in peripheral blood smear were noted. It was stated that systemic allergic reaction and granulomatous inflammation of dura mater were an uncommon response to the applied haemostatics and/or insulation material used during the first operation. This report show that haemostatic and isolating agents, generally used in neurosurgical procedure, may rarely cause local granulomatous processes considered as delayed hypersensitivity and the foreign body reactions. Therefore, they may hinder morphological assessment of the tissues during re-exploration and must be differentiate with the other infectious and non-infectious granulomatous processes.