Dose- and time-dependent effects of low molecular weight heparin on trophoblast

Low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) has been successfully applied in the treatment of pregnancy complications associated with pro-thrombotic and antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). The underlying mechanism remains enigmatic. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of time and dosage of LMWH on the proliferation and apoptosis of human trophoblast. The biological function of LMWH on primary trophoblast was evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), by detecting the expression of proliferation genes SDS22, APPL1, CyclinB1, as well as the expression of apoptosis-related gene Survivin. Our results showed that the treatment time and dosage of LMWH have critical effects on trophoblast proliferation and apoptosis. LMWH had the most obvious effect on promoting trophoblast proliferation and could suppress apoptosis at the concentration of 0.1 IU/ml at 72 h. This study thus provides detailed mechanism of the biological effects of LMWH on trophoblast, and sheds light on the effective clinical application of LMWH in pregnancy complications.