The human placenta project: Funded studies, imaging technologies, and future directions.

Area of Science:

• Reproductive biology
• Developmental biology
• Medical imaging

Background:

• The placenta is crucial for fetal development but its structure and function are not fully understood.
• The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development launched the Human Placenta Project (HPP) in 2014 to address this knowledge gap.
• The HPP has funded significant research, leading to numerous publications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review research funded by the HPP.
• To identify advances and limitations in placental research, focusing on imaging.
• To outline future research needs in placental science.

Main Methods:

• Comprehensive review of HPP-funded studies and publications.
• Analysis of research areas, advancements, and limitations.
• Specific focus on placental imaging techniques like MRI and ultrasound.

Main Results:

• The HPP has funded 41 studies and 459 publications, totaling over $101 million.
• Significant progress has been made in placental imaging technologies.
• Development of new tools for assessing placental structure and function using MRI and ultrasound.

Conclusions:

• The HPP has substantially advanced placental research.
• Placental imaging, especially MRI and ultrasound, shows great promise for understanding fetal development and health.
• Continued research is needed to fully elucidate placental function in normal and diseased states.