Expression of ATF4 and VEGF in chorionic villus tissue in early spontaneous abortion

Objective: To explore the relationship between early spontaneous abortion (SA) and the expression of activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Study design: The expression of ATF4 and VEGF protein and mRNA in villi from first trimester spontaneous abortion (SA, n = 30) and normal pregnancy (NP, n = 30) were detected by immunohistochemistry and fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction (FQ-PCR). Results: Both protein and mRNA expressions of ATF4 and VEGF in the SA group were significantly lower than in the NP group (P < 0.01). Their proteins are expressed mainly in syncytiotrophoblast, cytotrophoblast and villous stromal cells. Correlation analysis showed that the expression of ATF4 was positively correlated with that of VEGF in the SA group (r = 0.717, P < 0.01). Conclusion: Lower expression of ATF4 and VEGF genes in chorionic villus tissue may participate in the pathogenesis of spontaneous abortion. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.