Placental transcriptome profile of women with sickle cell disease reveals differentially expressed genes involved in migration, trophoblast differentiation and inflammation

Author(s)

Baptista, Leticia Carvalho ^[1] ; Costa, Maria Laura ^[2] ; Surita, Fernanda Garanhani ^[2] ; Rocha, Cristiane de Souza ^[3] ; Lopes-Cendes, Iscia ^[3] ; de Souza, Bruno Batista ^[1] ; Costa, Fernando Ferreira ^[4] ; de Melo, Monica Barbosa ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Campinas UNICAMP, Ctr Mol Biol & Genet Engn CBMEG, BR-13083875 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Campinas UNICAMP, Dept Obstet & Gynecol, BR-13083880 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[3] Univ Estadual Campinas, Fac Med Sci, Dept Med Genet & Genom Med, BR-13083887 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[4] Univ Campinas UNICAMP, Hematol & Hemotherapy Ctr, BR-13083878 Campinas, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: BLOOD CELLS MOLECULES AND DISEASES; v. 84, SEP 2020.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a group of disorders whose common characteristic is the presence of hemoglobin (Hb) S in erythrocytes. The main consequence of this abnormality is vaso-occlusion, which can affect almost all organs including the placenta. This study aimed to evaluate the gene expression profile in placentas of women with SCD by means of total RNA sequencing. For this, we proposed a case-control study, with three groups of pregnant women: HbSS (n = 10), HbSC (n = 14) and HbAA (n = 21). The results showed differences in expression in a number of genes such as NOS2 (fold change, FC = 4.52), HLAG (FC = 5.56), ASCL2 (FC = 3.61), CXCL10 (FC = -3.66) and IL1R2 (FC = 3.92) for the HbSC group and S100A8 (FC = -3.82), CPXM2 (FC = 4.57), CXCL10 (FC = -4.59), CXCL11 (FC = -3.72) and CAMP (FC = -4.55) for the HbSS group. Differentially expressed genes are mainly associated with migration, trophoblast differentiation and inflammation. The causes leading to altered gene expression in placentas of sickle cell patients are not fully understood, but the presence of intravascular hemolysis and vaso-occlusion, with cycles of ischemia and reperfusion, may contribute to the emergence of an environment which can be very harmful for placental physiology, altering the nutrient supply and metabolic exchange for fetal growth. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 15/08330-5 - Transcriptomics in placentas of women carrier of sickle cell disease.
• Grantee: Letícia de Carvalho Baptista
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 14/00984-3 - Red blood cell disorders: pathophysiology and new therapeutic approaches
• Grantee: Fernando Ferreira Costa
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants