Borne and Action Medical Research spotlight research led by Dr Victoria Male as they mark 10 years of jointly funding research into premature birth.
As World Prematurity Day (15 November 2026) approaches, Borne and Action Medical Research are highlighting the impact of research they have jointly funded over the last decade to improve understanding of premature birth and help give more babies the best possible start in life.
Despite the impact on families, many of the biological processes that support a healthy pregnancy, and trigger labour at the right time, remain poorly understood. Through two jointly funded projects, Dr Victoria Male and her team at Imperial College London are investigating the role of specialised immune cells at different stages of pregnancy; from helping establish a healthy placenta to understanding the processes that cause labour to begin.
Borne and Action Medical Research awarded £204,974 to Dr Victoria Male and her team at Imperial College London to investigate the role of specialised immune cells in pregnancy. These cells help regulate processes within the womb that are essential for both healthy placental development and when labour happens. By understanding how these cells work, and why they sometimes fail, the researchers hope to identify new ways to predict, prevent and treat pregnancy complications that can lead to babies being born too small or too soon.
“We urgently need effective treatments that can help stop premature labour but a major barrier to this is that we do not yet understand how labour is triggered, even when a pregnancy has reached full-term,” says Dr Male. “By fully understanding how these cells are involved in triggering labour, this could lead to ways to target them, or some of the molecules they produce, to prevent early labour.”
The Borne & Action project which began in 2023 focuses on a newly identified group of immune cells called decidual macrophages, which are found in the lining of the womb during pregnancy. The research aims to better understand the role these cells play in initiating labour by promoting inflammation and causing the waters surrounding the baby to break.
The team are studying samples from women at different stages of labour, and they are investigating how these immune cells behave both during normal labour and in cases of preterm birth.
New clues about how labour begins
The Borne Action funding has already generated important new insights into how labour begins. The team has shown that decidual macrophages produce proteins that may help the waters break at the start of labour and has developed a laboratory model that will allow these processes to be studied in greater detail.
Researchers have also analysed samples from over 50 women and found that the number of decidual macrophages increases during labour. Early findings suggest that the build-up of these cells may begin before labour starts, providing important clues about how labour is initiated.
These findings are helping to build a clearer picture of the immune mechanisms involved in labour and could ultimately identify new biological targets for therapies designed to prevent spontaneous preterm birth.
Building on the research
Building on this work, Dr Male was awarded further Borne Action funding of £229,743 in 2026 to investigate another specialised immune cell type, known as uterine natural killer (uNK1) cells. These cells are thought to play an important role in helping the placenta implant and develop correctly during early pregnancy. The researchers have discovered that uNK1 cells contain unique granules filled with proteins and are now identifying these proteins and investigating how they influence placental development.
Development of a healthy placenta is essential during pregnancy because it acts as the baby's lifeline, supplying oxygen and nutrients needed for growth and development while removing waste products. It also helps regulate important hormones and supports the connection between mother and baby. If the placenta does not develop or function properly, it can lead to serious complications, including restricted growth, premature birth and, in some cases, loss of life.
“We've recently discovered that uNK1 cells contain unique granules that we believe may play an important role in successful placental implantation,” says Dr Male. “By understanding this process, and why it sometimes goes wrong, we hope to identify new ways to prevent complications caused by placental insufficiency.”
The long-term impact could be significant. This Borne Action-funded research could lead to new tests capable of identifying women at risk of placental insufficiency before or very early in pregnancy, allowing closer monitoring and earlier intervention. In time, it may also point towards new treatments that support healthy placental development and reduce the risk of serious pregnancy complications, helping to prevent babies from being born too small or too soon.
As Dr Male explains, “Our findings could ultimately lead to a screening test to identify women at risk of placental insufficiency before or very early in pregnancy.”
David Badcock, Chief Executive of Borne, said: "One of the biggest barriers to preventing premature birth is that we still don’t fully understand the biological processes that trigger labour, even when pregnancy reaches full-term. Dr Male’s research is helping us piece together that puzzle. By understanding the role the immune system plays both in establishing a healthy pregnancy and in triggering labour, we can begin to identify where things may go wrong and, ultimately, where we might be able to intervene.
"The progression of this research into a second jointly funded project also demonstrates why long-term investment is so important. Each discovery gives us another piece of knowledge to build upon, bringing us closer to the tests and treatments that could one day identify pregnancies at risk earlier and prevent babies from being born too soon.”
Dr Douglas Graham, Chief Executive of Action Medical Research, said: “Premature birth can turn a family’s world upside down. Understanding why babies are born too soon is vital to finding ways to prevent it. As we mark 10 years of working together, we’re proud of the research our partnership has made possible. Thanks to supporters, we can help researchers tackle these unanswered questions and build the knowledge that could reduce the number of babies born too soon.”