Introduction
The placenta is a transient organ and although it is a physical barrier
between maternal blood and fetal circulation, several low molecular
weight substances are carried or passively cross it ensuring fetal
growth and development. Viral infection in the placenta indicates a
great risk of vertical transmission, which is dependent on specific
maternal immune response and specific viral receptor expression in
placenta or decidual cells and might result in pregnancy complications
such as preterm birth, intrauterine growth restriction and miscarriage1,2,3.
In this scenario, Human Cytomegalovirus (CMV), a member ofHerpesviridae family, has ability to remain, to cross the
placenta and infect the fetus, like only few pathogens are able to do.
This virus is a major cause of congenital infections in humans and
maternal infection may result in symptomatic disease or asymptomatic
infection in the neonate. CMV may be present in both the maternal
interface and in the villi which belong to the fetal tissue, indicating
that it may persist in the placenta independent of fetal infection1, 4. The placenta is a reservoir for CMV and plays an
important role in vertical transmission4. Cervical
reactivation and shedding are important routes for prenatal
transmission5,6.
The virus can be transmitted to the fetus during primary maternal
infection, causing malformation and other severe symptoms and, to a
lesser extent in latent reactivation or re-infection by different
strains, problems in fetal development and sensorineural hearingloss.
Cell permittivity is due to CMV interaction with heparin surface cell
receptors expressed in many cell types, including fibroblastos,
trophoblasts, macrophages and monocytes, epitelial cells, endothelial
cells and muscle cells 1,7. Maternal immunity function
influences viral infection but the route of CMV viral transmission
includes various permissive cell types present in the placenta6-8.
The present cross-sectional study estimated CMV molecular prevalence in
placenta biopsies and determined CMV DNA prevalence in the placenta and
cord blood, also correlating variables and suggesting possible
parameters that can assemble a more elaborate picture about the expected
outcomes of a pregnancy under this condition.