Elsevier

Placenta

Volume 36, Supplement 1, April 2015, Pages S5-S10
Placenta

IFPA meeting 2014 workshop report: Animal models to study pregnancy pathologies; new approaches to study human placental exposure to xenobiotics; biomarkers of pregnancy pathologies; placental genetics and epigenetics; the placenta and stillbirth and fetal growth restriction

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.placenta.2015.01.196Get rights and content

Abstract

Workshops are an important part of the IFPA annual meeting as they allow for discussion of specialized topics. At IFPA meeting 2014 there were six themed workshops, five of which are summarized in this report. These workshops related to various aspects of placental biology but collectively covered areas of animal models, xenobiotics, pathological biomarkers, genetics and epigenetics, and stillbirth and fetal growth restriction.

Section snippets

Animal models to study pregnancy pathologies

Organizers: Ted Golos, Anne Tarrade.

Speakers: Phelipe Favaron, Ted Golos, Antonio Gonzalez-Bulnes, Thomas Jansson, Anne Tarrade, Pauline Peugnet, Christiane Pfarrer, Jacqueline Wallace.

Outline: Human placental models offer the advantage of direct observation of human trophoblast biology, and mouse models offer the ability to genetically modify specific loci for direct mechanistic study. However other models offer advantages of size, accessibility of fetal physiology, or comparative insights for

New approaches to study human placental exposure to xenobiotics

Organizers: Sophie Gil, Rohan Lewis.

Speakers: Sophie Gil, Olivier Laprévote, Rohan M. Lewis, Richard K. Miller, Cathy Vaillancourt.

Outline: Exposure to xenobiotics during pregnancy is inevitable. The human placenta is considered as a selective barrier to protect the fetus against xenobiotics. With respect to drugs, assessing their transport across the human placenta has always been of vital importance to ensure their safety during pregnancy. With respect to pollutants, they are everywhere in

Biomarkers of pregnancy pathologies

Organizers: Jean Guibourdenche, Claire Roberts.

Speakers: Denis Gallot, Jean Guibourdenche, Claire Roberts, Carlos Salomon, Anne Cathrine Staff.

Outline: Finding new markers of human diseases is an important aim of both basic science and clinical research. In pregnant women, these markers can be clinical or sonographic markers or biological markers, also called biomarkers. However, different approaches can be used to identify and to validate emerging biomarkers. This depends mainly on the

Placental genetics and epigenetics

Organizers: Richard Saffery, Daniel Vaiman.

Speakers: Sandrine Barbaux, David Monk, Boris Novakovic, Cees Oudejans, Wendy Robinson.

Objective: This workshop aimed to explore the varying roles of genetic and epigenetic variation in regulating placental function.

The placenta and stillbirth and fetal growth restriction

Organizer: Alexander Heazell.

Speakers: Jan Jaap H.M. Erwich, Alexander E.P. Heazell, Mana Parast, Halit Pinar, Amber Sexton, Stephanie A. Worton.

Outline: The importance of placental research into fetal growth restriction and stillbirth was highlighted in the Lancet Stillbirth Series, with 4 out of 10 research priorities directly relating to placental studies. Histopathological examination of the placenta is recommended to determine the cause of stillbirth, but challenges remain, specifically in

Conflict of interest statement

None of the authors have any conflict of interest to declare.

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GEL edited this manuscript based on contributions from the other authors.

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