PDGFB Regulates the Development of the Labyrinthine Layer of the Mouse Fetal Placenta
Developmental Biology 212, 124–136 (1999) Article ID dbio.1999.9306, available online at http://www.idealibrary.com on PDGFB Regulates the Development of the Labyrinthine Layer of the Mouse Fetal Placenta Rolf Ohlsson,*,1 Pierre Falck,* Mats Hellstro¨m,† Per Lindahl,† Hans Bostro¨m,† Gary Franklin,* Lars A¨ hrlund-Richter,‡ Jeffrey Pollard,§ Philippe Soriano,¶ and Christer Betsholtz† *Department of Animal Development & Genetics, Uppsala University, Norbyva¨gen 18A, S-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden; †Department of Medical Biochemistry, Gothenburg University, Medicinaregatan 9A, S-413 90 Gothenburg, Sweden; ‡Department of Medical Nutrition, Karolinska Institute, Huddinge, Sweden; §Department of Developmental and Molecular Biology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York 10461; and ¶Division of Basic Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington 98109 PDGFB is a growth factor which is vital for the completion of normal prenatal development. In this study, we report the phenotypic analysis of placentas from mouse conceptuses that lack a functional PDGFB or PDGFRb gene. Placentas of both types of mutant exhibit changes in the labyrinthine layer, including dilated embryonic blood vessels and reduced numbers of both pericytes and trophoblasts. These changes are seen from embryonic day (E) 13.5, which coincides with the upregulation of PDGFB mRNA levels in normal placentas. By E17, modifications in shape, size, and number of the fetal blood vessels in the mutant placentas cause an abnormal ratio of the surface areas between the fetal and the maternal blood vessels in the labyrinthine layer. Our data suggest that PDGFB acts locally to contribute to the development of the labyrinthine layer of the fetal placenta and the formation of a proper nutrient–waste exchange system during fetal development.
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