自噬对人类胎盘发育及相关疾病的作用

自噬在人类胎盘的生成及发育中发挥重要作用,但其在人类胎盘中的生物学意义仍不十分明确,可能的作用之一是防止因低氧或营养不足导致的滋养层细胞凋亡。人类胎盘是血窦绒毛型,即母体血液直接接触绒毛。因此,绒毛滋养细胞很容易暴露于因母体血液变化而导致的应激状态下。妊娠并发症(如子痫前期和胎儿生长受限)自噬通路被激活以维持细胞内稳态,从而允许滋养细胞在氧气和葡萄糖不足的情况下继续生存。因而,自噬参与人类胎盘及相关疾病的发展,细胞滋养细胞氧气和葡萄糖水平变化参与调节自噬的改变。

The Role of Autophagy in the Development of Human Placenta and Placenta-Related Diseases

Autophagy plays a key role in the development of human placenta. But the biological significance of autophagy is still not clear. One possible role of autophagy is to protect trophoblasts from apoptosis induced by hypoxia or nutritional deprivation. The human placenta is hemochorial and maternal blood contact directly with chorion. Therefore, the villous trophoblasts are easily exposed to stress status caused by variable maternal blood flow. In pregnancy complications, such as preeclampsia and fetal growth retardation, the pathway of autophagy is activated to maintain cellular homeostasis allowing trophoblast cells to survive under shortage of oxygen and glucose. Autophagy is involved in development of the human placenta and placenta-related diseases, and changes in oxygen and glucose levels participate in regulation of autophagic changes in cytotrophoblast cells.