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Updated: Jun 19, 2026

Use of In vivo Imaging to Monitor the Progression of Experimental Mouse Cytomegalovirus Infection in Neonates
Published on: July 6, 2013
Cytomegalovirus-specific, high-avidity IgG with neutralizing activity in maternal circulation enriched in the fetal
Naoki Nozawa1, June Fang-Hoover, Takako Tabata
1Department of Cell and Tissue Biology, University of California-San Francisco, 94122, United States.
Background:
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the major cause of congenital infection and disease leading to permanent birth defects. In about 35-40% of pregnant women with primary CMV infection, virus crosses the placenta, resulting in the birth of congenitally infected babies. In contrast, this happens in only 1-3% of seropositive women with strong CMV-specific humoral immunity. Whether CMV reaches the fetus and disseminates depends on the level of high-avidity antibodies in the maternal circulation and the passive immunity of the fetus.
Objectives And Study Design:
To identify CMV infection in uncomplicated deliveries based on detection of viral DNA in placental biopsy specimens at term. To quantify CMV-specific IgG avidity, neutralizing titer, IgG1 concentration, and characterize the immunoblot profiles for CMV proteins in paired samples of placental and cord blood sera.
Results:
In accord with earlier reports, CMV DNA was detected in 39% (11/28) of placentas with mean- to high-avidity CMV-specific IgG. In seropositive women, the concentration of antiviral antibodies, specifically IgG1, increased in the fetal bloodstream, and CMV neutralizing titers in maternal and fetal blood were comparable.
Conclusions:
CMV-specific, high-avidity neutralizing antibodies from maternal circulation are transcytosed to the fetal bloodstream, contribute to suppression of viral replication in the placenta and could prevent congenital disease.
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