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Overexpression of Calreticulin in Pre-eclamptic Placentas: Effect on Apoptosis, Cell Invasion and Severity of Pre-eclampsia

  • Translational Biomedical Research
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Abstract

Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress has recently been identified as an important process involved in the pathology of pre-eclampsia (PE). Calreticulin (CRT) is an important ER resident protein which participates in the regulation of intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis, cell adhesion, and cell apoptosis. In order to clarify the role of this protein in normal human pregnancy and in PE, this study has examined the expression of CRT in pre-eclamptic placenta compared with control placenta. The expression of CRT mRNA and protein was elevated in the pre-eclamptic placentas in comparison with control placentas. Furthermore, the expression level was related to the severity of symptoms experienced by PE patients. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the biological characteristics of the CRT gene in trophoblast cells. A CRT-expressing vector was transfected into the JEG-3 human choriocarcinoma cell line. Investigations showed that both proliferation and invasion were inhibited and apoptosis was promoted by CRT expression in JEG-3 cells. These data suggest that augmentation of CRT in the placenta may induce cell apoptosis and impair the invasion of extravillous trophoblast cells, thus leading to shallow placentation in PE.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by grants from the Key Project of Medical Science and Technology Development Foundation, Nanjing Department of Health (ZKX08003 and YKK10035), and the Nanjing Medical Science and Technique Development Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, Nanjing Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 210004, Jiangsu Province, China

    Zhonghua Shi, Wenwen Hou, Xiangdong Hua, Xiang Zhang, Xiaomei Liu, Xin Wang & Xiaoqing Wang

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  1. Zhonghua Shi
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  2. Wenwen Hou
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  3. Xiangdong Hua
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  4. Xiang Zhang
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  5. Xiaomei Liu
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  6. Xin Wang
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  7. Xiaoqing Wang
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Xin Wang or Xiaoqing Wang.

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Zhonghua Shi and Wenwen Hou have contributed equally to this study.

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Shi, Z., Hou, W., Hua, X. et al. Overexpression of Calreticulin in Pre-eclamptic Placentas: Effect on Apoptosis, Cell Invasion and Severity of Pre-eclampsia. Cell Biochem Biophys 63, 183–189 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12013-012-9350-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12013-012-9350-5

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