Prior exposure to cytomegalovirus (CMV), a standard herpesvirus that could cause potential risk for pregnant women, can reduce the possibilities of miscarriage and birth defects, a recent study has revealed.
Pregnant women who contract cytomegalovirus are less more likely to transmit the infection to their children in the event that they have pre-existing immunity. Researchers at Tulane University made the findings based on a study conducted in macaques.
Cytomegalovirus infection normally doesn’t pose issues in healthy people, and most of the people don’t show any signs of infection. Nevertheless, pregnant women and folks with weakened immune systems might develop complications.
CMV is a number one reason for miscarriage and birth defects, including cerebral palsy and hearing loss, in children. The infection spreads through body fluids, comparable to blood, saliva, urine, semen and breast milk.
In line with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 20% of youngsters born with congenital cytomegalovirus infection may have long-term health problems. They could include growth issues, neurologic defects and issues with the brain, liver, spleen, and lungs.
Although the chance posed by CMV to a pregnant woman who gets the infection for the primary time while pregnant was known, the mechanism by which pre-existing immunity reduces their vulnerability was not fully understood until now. The researchers of the most recent study identified the precise immune mechanisms liable for the protective effect.
“When pregnant moms were initially infected with CMV throughout the first trimester, all of them transmitted the virus to their offspring, leading to a high rate of miscarriage. Nevertheless, when nonhuman primates previously infected with CMV were reinfected during their pregnancies, their offspring were protected. The robust immune response observed in moms upon reinfection resulted in just one out of 5 moms passing the virus through the placenta, with no hostile health outcomes for any of the infants,” the researchers said in a news release.
They emphasized that the nonhuman primate model used for the research closely resembled human CMV infection and transmission. They consider the study is a major step toward finding a vaccine to forestall infection in moms and babies.
“Understanding how pre-existing immunity can protect against CMV transmission while pregnant is crucial for developing an efficient CMV vaccine that may safeguard all pregnant women and their unborn babies,” said Dr. Amitinder Kaur, principal investigator of the study.