Updated on
What did the project achieve?
“Preterm birth has complex causes, but we know that inflammation in placental tissues increases the risk,” says Professor Rachel Tribe of King’s College London. “Our early-stage research shows promise for a new treatment approach that could help prevent babies from being born too early by suppressing this type of inflammation during pregnancy – offering hope of better outcomes for families in the future.”
In the UK, around 55,000 babies are born prematurely each year and tragically, more than 1,000 die as a result.1-5 Preterm birth is the leading cause of newborn death, and survivors can often grow up with life-changing conditions – such as cerebral palsy, learning difficulties, blindness and hearing loss.
This research explored a new potential treatment approach to prevent preterm birth by modifying the mother’s immune and inflammatory responses during pregnancy. The team collaborated with researchers in Sweden who have successfully isolated specialised cells called human decidual stromal cells (hDSCs) from full-term placental tissue. These cells play a crucial role in suppressing the mother’s natural immune responses during early pregnancy, helping her body accept the growing baby.
“Using a laboratory model of preterm birth, we demonstrated that delivering hDSCs to the mother during pregnancy can lengthen the time to delivery,” says Professor Tribe. “However, we’re still investigating the underlying mechanisms behind this.”
Additional experiments showed that the treatment did not prevent early pregnancy loss in a different laboratory model. The team believes this is likely due to different mechanisms driving this event.
“We were incredibly excited to test this novel immunotherapy with the potential to prevent extremely early preterm birth,” says Professor Tribe. “Our initial results suggest this approach should help reduce inflammation in the mother’s tissues and delay delivery, potentially benefitting pregnant women at high risk of giving birth far too soon.”
In future studies, the team now hopes to build on these initial results by using different models of preterm birth, determining the most effective treatment timings, and examining the effects of the treatment on inflammation in the mother and the baby.
References
- Office for National Statistics, Vital statistics in the UK: births, deaths and marriages – 2023 https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/datasets/vitalstatisticspopulationandhealthreferencetables [website accessed 28 June 2024]
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence - Preterm labour and birth final scope April 2013 http://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/gid-cgwave0660/resources/preterm-labour-and-birth-final-scope2 [website accessed 28 June 2024]
- Office for National Statistics. Childhood mortality in England and Wales 2022. Table 4. Child mortality (death cohort) tables in England and Wales - Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk) 2022 data tables. Release date May 2024 [website accessed 28 June 2024]
- National Records for Scotland. Vital Events Reference Tables 2022, Table 4.05: Infant Deaths by sex and cause, Scotland 2011 to 2022 List of Data Tables | National Records of Scotland (nrscotland.gov.uk) [website accessed 28 June 2024]
- Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency: Registrar General Annual Report 2020 Stillbirths and Infant Deaths, Table 4.5: Stillbirths and infant deaths by sex and cause, 2012 to 2020: Registrar General Annual Report 2020 Stillbirths and Infant Deaths | Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (nisra.gov.uk) [website accessed 28 June 2024]
This research was completed on
Around 55,000 babies are born prematurely in the UK each year.[1-2] While advances in treatment have led to improved survival, preterm babies have an increased risk of life-long disabilities. There is often no obvious reason for a preterm birth – and it could be that problems with the mother’s immune system, inflammation and/or infection are involved. Professor Rachel Tribe is aiming to develop a new treatment that can help prevent spontaneous preterm birth by modifying the mother’s immune and inflammatory responses during pregnancy. If the approach is successful, it could lead to happier outcomes for many babies and their families in the future.
Action Medical Research and Borne are jointly funding this research.
How are children’s lives affected now?
Around one in every 13 babies in the UK is born too soon – before 37 weeks of pregnancy.1,2 Babies who survive preterm birth have an increased risk of long-term complications including cerebral palsy and learning difficulties.
“The causes of preterm birth are complex and it’s not always possible to explain why it happens,” says Professor Tribe. “But certain factors are known to increase the risk of being born early, such as infection and inflammation in the mother.”
During early pregnancy, the mother’s body must accept the baby in the womb. Achieving this involves suppressing her natural immune defences – and specialised cells in the womb lining called decidual stromal cells (DSCs) are known to play an important role in this process.
“When babies are born prematurely without any obvious explanation, it may be that problems with the mother’s immune response and the presence of inflammation and/or infection are involved,” says Professor Tribe.
How could this research help?
“We are aiming to develop a new treatment approach to help prevent preterm birth – this will involve modifying the mother’s immune and inflammatory responses during pregnancy,” says Professor Tribe.
The team is collaborating with researchers in Sweden who have successfully isolated human decidual stromal cells (hDSCs) from full-term placental tissue and shown they can suppress immune cell growth in the laboratory.
“Using laboratory models, we will now explore if injecting hDSCs into the mother during pregnancy can help reduce inflammation and prevent preterm birth,” says Professor Tribe.
The hope is that hDSCs could prove to be a safe and effective new treatment for preterm birth – and encouragingly, these cells are already being used successfully to treat other inflammatory-related conditions.
This research provides an important first step towards developing a new immunotherapy that could be used to help prevent spontaneous preterm birth and lead to happier outcomes for many babies and their families.
References
1. Office for National Statistics, Vital statistics in the UK: births, deaths and marriages – 2020
2. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, Preterm labour and birth final scope April 2013
http://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/gid-cgwave0660/resources/preterm-labour-and-birth-final-scope2
Research table
Project details
| Project Leader | Professor Rachel M Tribe, BSc Sp Hons PhD |
| Location | Department of Women and Children’s Health, St Thomas’ Hospital Campus, King’s College London |
| Project Team |
Dr Natalie Suff, BSc MBBCh MRCOG PhD
Dr Deena L Gibbons, BSc Hons PhD |
| Other Locations | Peter Gorer Department of Immunobiology, School of Immunology and Microbial Sciences, Guy’s Hospital, King’s College London |
| Grant Awarded | |
| Grant Amount | £132,359 |
| Start Date | |
| End Date | |
| Duration | 18 months |
| Grant Code (GN number) | GN2870 |
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