Related Experiment Videos
Microsatellite mutations in spontaneously aborted embryos
D A Spandidos1, E Koumantakis, S Sifakis
1University Hospital, Medical School, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece. spandido@hol.gr
Objective:
To evaluate the incidence of microsatellite instability in spontaneously aborted embryos.
Design:
Retrospective study.
Setting:
Laboratory of Clinical Virology and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital, Medical School, University of Crete.
Patient(S):
Thirty-five women in whom spontaneous abortions occurred between the 6th and 20th weeks of pregnancy.
Intervention(S):
Thirty-five aborted embryonic tissues were analyzed with seven microsatellite markers, and their haplotypes were compared with the corresponding pattern of their parents.
Main Outcome Measure(S):
Microsatellite DNA.
Result(S):
Microsatellite instability was observed in 8 of 35 cases (23%). In 7 of 8 positive cases, microsatellite instability was restricted to one of the seven microsatellite markers, whereas in one case, three microsatellite markers were affected by instability. A statistically significant association was found between microsatellite instability and a previous normal childbirth.
Conclusion(S):
Genetic instability is a detectable phenomenon in spontaneous abortions, representing a significant increase in the mutational rate of the embryo and providing evidence for a mechanism associated with the phenomenon of spontaneous abortion. We conclude that this elevated mutational rate affects active genomic sequences that play a critical role in the viability of the embryo, leading to cell death and abortion.