Transcriptome of human chorioamniotic membranes of severe preterm birth

Preterm birth (PTB), defined as the delivery of an infant before 37 weeks of completed gestation, results of the interaction of both, genetic and environmental components and constitutes a complex multifactorial syndrome. Transcriptome analysis of PTB has proved challenging because of the multiple causes of PTB and the numerous maternal and foetal gestational tissues that must interact to facilitate parturition. A common pathway of labour and PTB may be the activation of fetal membranes. In this work chorioamnion membranes from severe preterm and term fetus were analysed using RNA seq. The primary goal of this study was to identify differentially expressed transcripts and dilucidate molecular mechanisms distinguishing severe PTBs from term births. Overall design: Chorioamnion tissues were collected immediately after labor from women who had spontaneous severe preterm births between 24-33 weeks (n=4) and women with spontaneous term labor (>37 weeks)(n=4).

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