Definition and Quantification of Three-Dimensional Imaging Targets to Phenotype Pre-Eclampsia Subtypes: An Exploratory Study

S. Hermans, J. Pilon, D. Eschweiler, J. Stegmaier, C.A.H. Severens-Rijvers, S. Al-Nasiry, M. van Zandvoort, D. Kapsokalyvas*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Pre-eclampsia is a severe placenta-related complication of pregnancy with limited early diagnostic and therapeutic options. Aetiological knowledge is controversial, and there is no universal consensus on what constitutes the early and late phenotypes of pre-eclampsia. Phenotyping of native placental three-dimensional (3D) morphology offers a novel approach to improve our understanding of the structural placental abnormalities in pre-eclampsia. Healthy and pre-eclamptic placental tissues were imaged with multiphoton microscopy (MPM). Imaging based on inherent signal (collagen, and cytoplasm) and fluorescent staining (nuclei, and blood vessels) enabled the visualization of placental villous tissue with subcellular resolution. Images were analysed with a combination of open source (FIJI, VMTK, Stardist, MATLAB, DBSCAN), and commercially (MATLAB) available software. Trophoblast organization, 3D-villous tree structure, syncytial knots, fibrosis, and 3D-vascular networks were identified as quantifiable imaging targets. Preliminary data indicate increased syncytial knot density with characteristic elongated shape, higher occurrence of paddle-like villous sprouts, abnormal villous volume-to-surface ratio, and decreased vascular density in pre-eclampsia compared to control placentas. The preliminary data presented indicate the potential of quantifying 3D microscopic images for identifying different morphological features and phenotyping pre-eclampsia in placental villous tissue.
Original languageEnglish
Article number3240
Number of pages15
JournalInternational Journal of Molecular Sciences
Volume24
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Feb 2023

Keywords

  • placenta
  • multiphoton microscopy
  • pre-eclampsia
  • quantification
  • HUMAN FETOPLACENTAL VASCULOGENESIS
  • SYNCYTIAL KNOTS
  • CLINICAL PRESENTATIONS
  • VILLOUS TROPHOBLAST
  • HUMAN PLACENTA
  • NORMAL TERM
  • PREGNANCIES
  • APOPTOSIS
  • MEMBRANE
  • GROWTH

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