title: Exploring transplacental transmission of Pneumocystis oryctolagi in first-time pregnant and multiparous rabbit does.
abstract: Pneumocystis sp. is transmitted through the airborne route and presents a high host-species-specificity. Occasional reports of Pneumocystis pneumonia in still births and newborn infants suggest that other routes of transmission, e.g. transplacental might occur. The latter has been reported in rabbits but available data indicate that transplacental transmission of Pneumocystis seems not to occur in corticosteroid-treated rats and in SCID mice. The present study was undertaken to evaluate transplacental transmission of Pneumocystis oryctolagi. The spontaneously-acquired pneumocystosis rabbit model using hybrid California/New Zealand white female rabbits was selected because of similarities among rabbit and human placentas. Three different experiments were conducted in France and Chile. Pneumocystis organisms were detected by microscopy in the lungs of pregnant does and Pneumocystis DNA was found in the lungs of fetuses from the multiparous does from the second week to the end of gestation. Pneumocystis DNA was not detected in fetuses from primiparous does. Detection of Pneumocystis oryctolagi--DNA in fetuses of multiparous does and not in those of primiparous ones, suggests that transplacental transmission may be favored by multiple gestations. Whether Pneumocystis-DNA in fetal tissues from multiparous does resulted from transplacental passage of viable transmissible forms requires further investigation.
authors.affiliation: Pneumocystis Research Laboratory, Instituto de Ciencias Biomédicas, Facultad de Medicina Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile.
authors.forename: Catherine A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Sanchez
authors.forename: Magali
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chabé
authors.forename: El Moukhtar
authors.initials: el M
authors.lastname: Aliouat
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Durand-Joly
authors.forename: Nausicaa
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Gantois
authors.forename: Valérie
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Conseil
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: López
authors.forename: Thérèse
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Duriez
authors.forename: Eduardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dei-Cas
authors.forename: Sergio L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Vargas
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical; D008168:Lung / Q000382:microbiology; D010298:Parity; D010920:Placenta / Q000382:microbiology*; D011010:Pneumocystis / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D011020:Pneumonia, Pneumocystis / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000635:transmission; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000382:microbiology*; D011817:Rabbits / Q000382:microbiology*
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial