Reproductive Immunology: Basic Concepts [1, 1 ed.] 0128185082, 9780128185087

Table of contents :
Front Cover
Reproductive Immunology: Basic Concepts
Copyright
Contents
Contributors
About the editor
Chapter 1 The role of the immune system during pregnancy: General concepts
1 Introduction
2 Immunological stages of pregnancy
3 Implantation: A wound that needs repair
4 The inflammatory characteristics of embryo implantation
5 Dendritic cells and their effect on the epithelium and stroma
6 Macrophages and their role during implantation
7 Mechanisms of macrophages mediate implantation success
8 The evolutionary role of inflammation during embryo implantation
9 Trophoblast-macrophage interaction: Switching inflammation
10 The role of the microbiome during pregnancy: Maintaining the immunological balance
11 Inadequate macrophage polarization and implantation failure
12 Conclusion
Clinical relevance
References
Chapter 2 Presentation and recognition of placental, fetal, and pathogen-derived antigens in human pregnancy
1 Introduction
2 Direct recognition of placental and fetal Allo-antigens by decidual T cells
3 Direct recognition of placental and fetal Allo-antigens by decidual NK cells (dNK)
4 Indirect recognition of minor histocompatibility antigens (mHags)
5 Recognition of pathogen-derived antigens by CD8    + T and NK cells during pregnancy
6 Clinical implications
7 Conclusions
References
Chapter 3 Uterine macrophages: Essential roles for a successful human pregnancy
1 Introduction
2 Monocyte and macrophage origin and phenotype
3 Macrophages in the nonpregnant and early pregnant uterus
4 Decidual macrophage phenotype
5 How do uterine macrophages acquire their unique phenotype?
6 Functional roles of decidual macrophages in normal pregnancy
7 Myometrial macrophages and parturition
8 Conclusion
References
Chapter 4 Natural killer cells in reproduction: Before, during and after pregnancy
1 Introduction
2 Uterine NK cell subsets
3 The origin of uterus NK cells
4 Functions of uNK cells
5 Regulation of NK cell cytotoxicity
6 Why are dNK cells so different from other NK subsets?
7 Assisted NK-targeted reproductive therapy: Harmful or helpful?
8 Concluding remarks
References
Chapter 5 To B (e) born: New concepts concerning B cells throughout pregnancy
1 Introduction
2 B cell populations
3 B cells in healthy pregnancy
3.1 Alterations in the number and phenotype of B cells before and during pregnancy
3.2 Functions of B cells during pregnancy
3.3 Hormonal regulation of B cells during pregnancy
3.3.1 Human chorionic gonadotropin
3.3.2 Progesterone
3.3.3 Estrogens
4 B cells in pregnancy complications
4.1 Pregnancy loss and recurrent pregnancy loss
4.2 Preterm birth/stillbirth
4.3 B cells in infection-associated spontaneous preterm delivery
4.4 B cells in preterm delivery without underlying infection
4.5 B cells in iatrogenic preterm delivery
4.5.1 Pre-eclampsia
4.5.2 Intrauterine growth restriction
4.6 B cell-mediated autoimmunity and pregnancy
4.6.1 APS
4.6.2 SLE
4.7 Protective immunity during pregnancy and lactation
5 Conclusions
6 Clinical implications
References
Chapter 6 Neutrophils: Diverse functions in the endometrium of cycling women and during pregnancy
1 A brief introduction to neutrophil biology
1.1 Neutrophil production and release
1.2 Neutrophil entry into tissues
2 Neutrophil effector mechanisms
2.1 Neutrophil activation and degranulation
2.2 Phagocytosis
2.3 Neutrophil extracellular traps
2.4 Neutrophil-derived extracellular vesicles
2.5 Neutrophils as multifunctional cells
2.6 Detecting and isolating neutrophils
3 Neutrophils in the cycling human endometrium
3.1 Neutrophil roles in menstruation and endometrial repair
4 Endometrial neutrophil contributions to human placental development
5 Neutrophil contributions to parturition
6 Neutrophils aid maternal immunotolerance
7 Do neutrophils contribute to disorders of menstruation and pregnancy?
7.1 Abnormal uterine bleeding
7.2 Infertility
7.3 Pre-eclampsia
7.4 Antiphospholipid syndrome
7.5 Preterm birth
7.6 Vaginal mesh
8 Conclusions
Acknowledgments
References
Chapter 7 Regulatory T cells: Master regulators for the success of pregnancy
1 Introduction
2 Functions of Treg cells and their subpopulations
3 Maintenance of allogenic pregnancy and PA-specific Treg cells
4 Pregnancy-related complications and disruption of Treg-cell-mediated tolerance
5 Immunological therapeutic approach for recurrent miscarriage and preeclampsia
6 Conclusion
References
Chapter 8 Immunology of the decidua
1 Introduction
2 Decidualization in mice and humans
3 Inflammation in the periimplantation period potentiates implantation and decidualization
4 After the periimplantation period, the decidua assumes an antiinflammatory state and establishes a specialized niche fo ...
4.1 The decidua promotes the local expansion of decidual NK cells
4.2 The decidua limits the recruitment of effector Th1 cells and CTLs
4.3 The decidual stroma impairs dendritic cell migration
4.4 The decidua dynamically controls monocyte recruitment and macrophage population dynamics in a gestation stage-depende ...
4.5 DSCs are unable to mount selective cell-intrinsic inflammatory responses
5 Decidual inflammation as a critical trigger for labor onset
6 Conclusion and perspectives
Acknowledgments
References
Chapter 9 Mechanism of glucocorticoid action in immunology—Basic concepts
1 Mechanisms of glucocorticoid synthesis, bioavailability, and metabolism
2 The glucocorticoid receptor
3 Glucocorticoid receptor signaling
4 Transgenic mice inform cell-type-specific actions of glucocorticoid signaling in the immune system
5 Indirect actions on the immune system mediated by tissue-specific functions of GR
6 Immune mediating actions of exogenous glucocorticoids
7 Pro-inflammatory mechanisms of action by glucocorticoids
8 Conclusion
References
Chapter 10 Endocrine control of mucosal immunity in the human female reproductive tract: Bridging implantation with pathog ...
1 Introduction
1.1 Balancing procreation with protection
1.2 Mucosal immune system in the FRT
1.3 Hormone changes during the menstrual cycle
1.4 Hormonal control of mucosal immunity
2 Innate immunity
2.1 Epithelial cells
2.1.1 Barrier protection
2.1.2 Mucus
2.1.3 Pattern recognition receptors (PRRs)
2.1.4 Antimicrobials and cytokines
2.2 Fibroblasts
2.3 Neutrophils
2.4 Macrophages and dendritic cells
2.5 Innate lymphoid cells and NK cells
3 Cell-mediated immunity
3.1 CD4    + T helper cells and regulatory T cells
3.2 CD8    + T cells
4 Humoral immunity
4.1 Immunoglobulin-producing cells
4.2 IgA and IgG in FRT secretions
5 Microbiome
6 Conclusions
References
Chapter 11 The nature of the immune response in microbial-associated and sterile intraamniotic inflammation
1 The immune cellular composition of amniotic fluid in normal pregnancy
2 The cellular immune response in intraamniotic infection
3 The biology of neutrophils in the context of intraamniotic infection
4 The origin of amniotic fluid neutrophils and monocytes/macrophages in women with intraamniotic infection or inflammatio ...
5 Two different forms of intraamniotic inflammation in women with spontaneous preterm labor
6 A new clinical entity: Sterile intraamniotic inflammation
6.1 The cytokine network in sterile intraamniotic inflammation: A prominent role for alarmins
6.2 Alarmins induce preterm labor and birth
6.3 The NLRP3 inflammasome: A mechanism whereby alarmins can induce preterm labor and birth
6.4 Can sterile intraamniotic inflammation be treated?
7 Amniotic fluid fetal T cells can induce preterm labor and birth
Acknowledgments
Disclosures
References
Chapter 12 Autoimmunity, regulatory T cells, and pregnancy: Maintaining the balance
1 Introduction
2 Treg cells
3 Treg cell-mediated immunosuppression
4 The role of Treg cells in pregnancy
4.1 Maintenance of pregnancy
4.1.1 Treg cells in murine pregnancy
Kinetics of Treg cells in pregnancy
Mechanisms of Treg cell expansion during pregnancy
Locations of Treg cells, their types, and functions in pregnancy
4.1.2 Treg cells in human pregnancy
Kinetics of Treg cells in peripheral blood in pregnancy
Treg cells at the fetal-maternal interface
4.2 Treg cells in obstetrical complication
4.2.1 Treg cells in pregnancy complication in a murine model
Treg cells in abortion in murine pregnancy
Treg cells in infection and fetal loss in murine pregnancy
Treg cells in preeclampsia in murine pregnancy
4.2.2 Treg cells in pregnancy complication in human
Treg cells in infertility and miscarriage in human pregnancy
Treg cells in preeclampsia in human pregnancy
4.3 Treg cells in pregnancy with autoimmune disease
4.3.1 Treg cells in nonpregnant patients with autoimmune disease
4.3.2 Deterioration or amelioration of autoimmune disease during pregnancy and the postpartum period
4.3.3 Treg cells in autoimmune disease in murine pregnancy
4.3.4 Treg cells in autoimmune disease in human pregnancy
4.3.5 Therapeutic approaches by inducing Treg cells for obstetrical complications and autoimmune diseases during pregnanc ...
5 Conclusions
Bullet points
References
Chapter 13 Mucosal immunology of the female reproductive tract and its regulation by female sex hormones
1 Introduction
2 FRT structure
3 Innate immunity in the FRT
3.1 Epithelial cells
3.1.1 Pattern recognition receptors
3.1.2 Mucus
3.1.3 Antimicrobial peptides
3.1.4 Cytokines and chemokines
3.2 Antigen-presenting cells
3.2.1 Macrophages
3.2.2 Dendritic cells
3.3 Neutrophils
3.4 Natural killer cells
4 Adaptive immunity in the FRT
4.1 T cells
4.2 B cells and antibody responses
5 HSV-2 infection in the FRT
6 Conclusion
References
Chapter 14 Toll-like receptors and NOD-like receptors at the implantation site
1 Introduction
2 TLRs, NOD-like receptors, and their ligands
2.1 Toll-like receptors
2.2 NOD-like receptors
3 TLR and NLR signaling pathways
3.1 TLR signaling
3.2 NLRs signaling
4 TLR and NLR expression at the maternal-fetal interface
4.1 Toll-like receptors
4.1.1 Placental villi
4.1.2 Decidua and amnion
4.2 NOD-like receptors
4.2.1 Placental villi
4.2.2 Decidua and amnion
5 TLR and NLR functions at the maternal-fetal interface
5.1 Toll-like receptors
5.1.1 Immune recognition and response against bacterial and viral infections
Antibacterial response: TLR4 and TLR2
Antiviral response: The role of TLR3
5.1.2 Modulation of immune cell function
5.1.3 Other functions of TLRs at the maternal-fetal interface
5.2 NOD-like receptors
5.2.1 Intracellular recognition and response against bacterial infections
5.2.2 NOD proteins and TLRs can cooperate and act synergistically
5.2.3 NOD1 and NOD2 may control the invasiveness of primary human trophoblasts
6 Summary
7 Clinical relevance of TLRs, NOD1, and NOD2 at the maternal-fetal interface
Acknowledgments
References
Chapter 15 Hofbauer cells and placental viral infection ☆
1 Introduction
2 Hofbauer cell origin and localization
3 Hofbauer cell function
4 Hofbauer cells and viral infection
5 ZIKV
6 HIV
References
Chapter 16 Gamma/delta T cells in pregnancy
1 Human γ δ T cells: Not unique in one function, but rated excellent in many
2 Implantation, DALT, and γ δ T cells
3 γ δ T cells in human pregnancy
3.1 Maternal γ δ T lymphocytes: End-stage effector cells at the maternal-fetal interface
3.2 Fetal immunocompetent γ δ T cells: First on the stage
Acknowledgments
References
Chapter 17 Placental regulation of immune functions
1 Introduction
2 Placental regulation of maternal immune cells
2.1 Uterine natural killer cells (uNK cells)
2.2 Decidual macrophages (dMø)
2.3 T-lymphocytes
3 Placental regulation of fetal immune development
3.1 Immune development begins prenatally and is sensitive to in utero programming
3.2 The placental response to stress and fetal immune programming
3.3 Maternal inflammation and fetal immune programming
3.4 The role of placental sex in the regulation of fetal immune development
4 Translational and clinical significance
References
Chapter 18 TAM receptors in pregnancy
1 Introduction
2 TAM receptors: Structure, ligands, distribution in body, and signaling
2.1 Structure of TAM receptors
2.2 Ligands of TAM receptors
2.3 Distribution of TAM receptors in the body
2.4 Signaling pathways of TAM receptor
2.4.1 Activation
2.4.2 Deactivation
2.4.3 Downstream signaling and biological functions
2.4.3.1 Tyro3 signaling
2.4.3.2 Axl/Mer signaling
2.5 TAM receptors in chronic inflammation and autoimmune disease
2.6 TAM receptors in viral infection
3 Presence of TAM receptors during pregnancy
3.1 TAM receptors in the placenta
3.2 TAM receptors in decidual macrophage
4 Clinical implications of TAM receptors in pregnancy
4.1 TAM receptors in preeclampsia (PE)
4.2 TAM receptors in preterm delivery
5 Conclusion and future prospect
Acknowledgments
Funding
Declaration of interest
References
Chapter 19 The epigenetic regulation of the immune system during pregnancy
1 Introduction
2 Decidual immune cells
2.1 Natural killer cells
2.2 Regulatory T cells
2.3 Macrophages
3 Conclusions
4 Clinical relevance of epigenetic modifications of immune cells at the maternal-fetal interface
Acknowledgments
References
Chapter 20 Interactions between the epithelial barrier and the microbiota in the reproductive tract
1 Introduction
2 Composition of the human vaginal microbiome
3 Coevolution of lactobacilli with humans
4 The vaginal microbiota and diseases
5 Basic concept of vaginal probiotics
6 Basic concept of the host defenses in the vagina
7 Microbial barriers
7.1 Lactic acid and other short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs)
7.2 Bacteriocins
7.3 Competitive adhesion
7.4 Coaggregation/biofilm formation
7.5 Hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2)
7.6 Other pathogens in the vaginal microbiome
8 Biochemical barriers
8.1 Antimicrobial peptides and proteins (AMPs)
8.2 Immunoglobulin (Ig)
9 Physical barriers
10 Intrinsic barriers
10.1 Autophagy
10.2 Apoptosis
10.3 Antiretroviral factors
11 Immunological barriers
11.1 Innate immunity
11.2 Adaptive/acquired immunity
12 Future directions
References
Index
Back Cover