Université du Québec à Montréal, Département des sciences biologiques and Centre de recherche BioMed, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Reprod Sci. 2011 Nov;18(11):1085-91. doi: 10.1177/1933719111404608. Epub 2011 Apr 14.
Human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) represent up to 8% of the human genome and express several of its genes in the placenta. Studies have demonstrated that HERV envelope proteins syncytins 1 and 2 play a crucial role in trophoblast fusion and placenta development. Here, we compared the levels of placental expression of syncytins with the severity of preeclampsia (PE) symptoms. Confocal microscopy experiments indicated a pronounced deficiency in cellular fusion in trophoblast cells from patients with PE when compared to controls. As determined by quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blot analyses, syncytin mRNA and protein levels were decreased in PE placentas versus controls. Interestingly, syncytin 2 levels were more importantly impaired than syncytin 1. Our results further highlighted the existence of a correlation between the extent of the decrease in the expression levels of both fusogenic proteins and the degree of severity of PE symptoms. These HERV proteins could thereby be used as potential markers for the early diagnosis of PE.
人类内源性逆转录病毒 (HERV) 占人类基因组的 8%，并在胎盘表达其多个基因。研究表明，HERV 包膜蛋白 syncytin 1 和 2 在滋养层融合和胎盘发育中发挥关键作用。在这里，我们比较了胎盘中 syncytin 的表达水平与子痫前期 (PE) 症状的严重程度。与对照组相比，共聚焦显微镜实验表明，PE 患者的滋养层细胞的细胞融合明显减少。通过定量逆转录聚合酶链反应 (qRT-PCR) 和 Western blot 分析，PE 胎盘的 syncytin mRNA 和蛋白水平均低于对照组。有趣的是，syncytin 2 的水平比 syncytin 1 降低更为显著。我们的研究结果进一步强调了这两种融合蛋白表达水平降低的程度与 PE 症状严重程度之间存在相关性。这些 HERV 蛋白可作为 PE 的早期诊断的潜在标志物。
