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The rate of COVID-19 transmission from mom to baby is low.

By on February 4, 2022

Up until now, what we know about the placenta is that it keeps the fetus safe and fed. However, Boston researchers recently revealed its findings in the American Journal of Pathology that it also protects the baby from Covid-19.

The new study by Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) shows  ACE-2, the receptor that allows SARS-CoV-2 to enter cells, is found in lower levels in the placentas of pregnant women with Covid-19 compared to those without.

“We think that when a woman has Covid-19 in pregnancy, the placenta is shedding off ACE-2 as a way to block SARS-CoV-2 from being passed to the fetus,” said Elizabeth S. Taglauer, Assistant Professor of Paediatrics at BUSM.

In the study, the team involved collecting placentas from two groups of women who delivered at BMC from July 2020-April 2021.

The first group was women who had normal pregnancies and no report of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The second group of women were SARS-CoV-2 positive and had active Covid-19 disease during pregnancy.

The researchers, then, observed the ACE-2 expression in their placentas under the microscope and compared placental ACE-2 expression using genetic and protein analysis techniques.

According to the researchers, the placenta has many similarities with the lung, so this study also highlights the importance of studying it to help understand a variety of lung diseases and highlights the important role of controlling ACE-2 as a way to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infections.

“The placenta is one of the few ‘success stories’ of the pandemic. If we understand how the placenta is naturally protecting babies from Covid-19, this may provide important information for therapies and strategies to help prevent other SARS-CoV-2 infections from continuing to spread,” added Taglauer.

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