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A possible "communication line" between the conceptus and the uterus
A possibility of a model in which the conceptus utilizes membrane-like vesicles for transmembrane signaling between the chorioamnion (CA) and decidua (D) was tested in vitro. Tissue slices of CA and D from first and second trimester pregnancy material were exposed to liposomes (LUVS) encapsulating pBR 322 bacterial plasmid DNA radiolabelled with 32P alpha-ATP by nick translation. The corresponding CA and D cells yielded different amounts of incorporated radioactivity which was significantly (p less than less than 0.01) higher in the decidua as compared to the CA. Our data provides the first evidence that CA and especially decidual cells could actively pick up membrane-like vesicles. In spite of the fact that CA is an avascular tissue, such processes could readily operate on the outer surface of the conceptus and might play a role in the chain of events which leads to parturition.
A possibility of a model in which the conceptus utilizes membrane-like vesicles for transmembrane signaling between the chorioamnion (CA) and decidua (D) was tested in vitro. Tissue slices of CA and D from first and second trimester pregnancy material were exposed to liposomes (LUVS) encapsulating pBR 322 bacterial plasmid DNA radiolabelled with 32P alpha-ATP by nick translation. The corresponding CA and D cells yielded different amounts of incorporated radioactivity which was significantly (p less than less than 0.01) higher in the decidua as compared to the CA. Our data provides the first evidence that CA and especially decidual cells could actively pick up membrane-like vesicles. In spite of the fact that CA is an avascular tissue, such processes could readily operate on the outer surface of the conceptus and might play a role in the chain of events which leads to parturition.