Alteration of integrins under hypoxic stress in early placenta and choriocarcinoma cell line BeWo.

Invasion of the trophoblast into the decidua and the myometrium is very important for the establishment of a normal pregnancy. This invasion is regulated by the expression of integrins in the trophoblast. Recently, it has been shown that invasion of the trophoblast is impaired in preeclampsia. We report the effect of hypoxia on the expression of integrins and extracellular matrices at the mRNA level in early placenta and BeWo cells. Tissue RNA levels of fibronectin and integrin alpha5 were significantly higher in the hypoxic condition than under normoxic conditions. In contrast, tissue RNA levels of integrin alpha1 were significantly lower for the hypoxic condition than those under normoxic conditions. Alteration of the integrin components and increases in fibronectin expression were observed in early placenta and BeWo cells under hypoxic conditions. These results suggest that hypoxic stress regulates the synthesis of integrin and fibronectin mRNAs in early placenta. Copyright 2004 S. Karger AG, Basel