Elsevier

Placenta

Volume 48, Supplement 1, December 2016, Pages S12-S16
Placenta

IFPA meeting 2015 workshop report III: nanomedicine applications and exosome biology, xenobiotics and endocrine disruptors and pregnancy, and lipid

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.placenta.2016.01.003Get rights and content

Abstract

Workshops are an important part of the IFPA annual meeting, as they allow for discussion of specialized topics. At the IFPA meeting 2015 there were twelve themed workshops, three of which are summarized in this report. These workshops were related to various aspects of placental biology but collectively covered areas of pregnancy pathologies and placental metabolism: 1) nanomedicine applications and exosome biology; 2) xenobiotics and endocrine disruptors and pregnancy; 3) lipid mediators and placental function.

Section snippets

Nanomedicine applications and exosome biology

Chairs: Carlos Salomon and Jeffrey Keelan.

Speakers: Carlos Salomon, Claudia Gohner, Jeffrey Keelan, Helen Jones, Lynda Harris and Roger Smith.

Xenobiotics and endocrine disruptors and pregnancy

Chairs: Padma Murthi Murray Mitchell.

Speakers: Murray Mitchell, Jeffery Keelan, Cathy Vaillancourt, Richard Saffery, Vicki Clifton and Padma Murthi.

Conclusions

Evidence suggests that BPA can disrupt estrogen-sensitive developmental processes, although several studies indicate that environmental exposure at typical levels does not have effects on reproduction or development. In this workshop findings suggesting that disturbances in serotonin signalling may be responsible for the pregnancy complications associated with SSRIs treatment was discussed. Interestingly, sex difference in cortisol-regulated pathways of the placenta has been observed.

Lipid mediators and placental function

Chairs: Denise Hemmings and Christiane Albrecht.

Speakers: Christiane Albrecht, Isabella Caniggia, Denise Hemmings, Alicia Jawerbaum, Ed Johnstone, Rohan Lewis, Theresa Powell, Christian Wadsack.

Conclusions

The group discussions focused on the importance of lipid metabolism for placental function, the tools we have for assessment and the impact of pregnancy complications on both placental usage and transport of lipids to the fetus, e.g. during obesity and diabetes. Identification of outstanding research questions on the role of lipids in placental function and fetal outcomes was a valuable outcome of this workshop. It is hoped that researchers in this field and those who are new will begin to

Conflict of interest

None of the authors has any conflict of interest to declare.

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CS edited this manuscript based on contributions from the other authors.

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