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Experimental intrauterine Ureaplasma infection in sheep

2005; Elsevier BV; Volume: 192; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.ajog.2004.11.063

1097-6868

Timothy J. M. Moss, Ilias Nitsos, Machiko Ikegami, Alan H. Jobe, John P. Newnham,

Neuroscience of respiration and sleep

Prenatal Ureaplasma spp exposure is associated with preterm birth and modulates the neonates' susceptibility to respiratory distress syndrome and bronchopulmonary dysplasia. We hypothesized that intra-amniotic ureaplasmas would cause lung inflammation and alter fetal lung development.Pregnant ewes bearing singleton fetuses were given an intra-amniotic injection of 20 x 10 6 CFUs of U parvum (serovar 3) or vehicle, either 1, 3, 6, or 10 weeks before the delivery of preterm lambs at 124 days of gestation (n = 4-10 per group) for evaluation of inflammation and fetal lung maturation.Ureaplasmas were recovered from amniotic and fetal lung fluids after intra-amniotic injection. Body weight and umbilical arterial pH were reduced by Ureaplasma exposure for 10 weeks ( P < .05). Ureaplasmas caused progressive lung inflammation and improvements in lung function that were associated with increased surfactant lipids (control, 0.13 +/- 0.02 micromol/kg; 10 weeks of Ureaplasma exposure, 7.43 +/- 3.0 micromol/kg; P < .001) and surfactant protein messenger RNA expression.Long-term exposure to ureaplasmas in amniotic fluid alters ovine fetal development.