Role of placenta-specific protein 1 in trophoblast invasion and migration

Wen-Lin Chang1, Qing Yang2, Hui Zhang2

  • 1College of Veterinary MedicineHunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Reproductive BiologyInstitute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaBeijing Obstetrics and Gynecology HospitalCapital Medical University, Beijing 100069, ChinaGraduate School of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing 100039, China College of Veterinary MedicineHunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Reproductive BiologyInstitute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaBeijing Obstetrics and Gynecology HospitalCapital Medical University, Beijing 100069, ChinaGraduate School of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing 100039, China.

Reproduction (Cambridge, England)
|July 4, 2014
PubMed

Placenta-specific protein 1 (PLAC1), a placenta-specific gene, is known to be involved in the development of placenta in both humans and mice. However, the precise role of PLAC1 in placental trophoblast function remains unclear. In this study, the localization of PLAC1 in human placental tissues and its physiological significance in trophoblast invasion and migration are investigated by technical studies including real-time RT-PCR, in situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and functional studies by utilizing cell invasion and migration assays in the trophoblast cell line HTR8/SVneo as well as the primary inducing extravillous trophoblasts (EVTs). The results show that PLAC1 is mainly detected in the trophoblast columns and syncytiotrophoblast of the first-trimester human placental villi, as well as in the EVTs that invade into the maternal decidua. Knockdown of PLAC1 by RNA interference significantly suppresses the invasion and migration of HTR8/SVneo cells and shortens the distance of the outgrowth of the induced EVTs from the cytotrophoblast column of the explants. All the above data suggests that PLAC1 plays an important role in human placental trophoblast invasion and migration.

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