ArticlePlacenta2021
Placental Changes in the serotonin transporter (Slc6a4) knockout mouse suggest a role for serotonin in controlling nutrient acquisition.
Article in Placenta, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 13 citations in OpenAlex.
- Diminished Maternal Tryptophan Leads to Sexually Dimorphic Differences in the Placenta-Brain Axis.Nutrients · 2026Article
- Susceptibility of the Placenta and Fetal Brain to Maternal Probiotic Supplementation.Microorganisms · 2026Article
- Tryptophan's Journey Through Pregnancy: The Role of Serotonin.International journal of tryptophan research : IJTR · 2026Review
- Placental expression of the serotonin transporter (SERT) gene: associations with maternal overweight/obesity and neonatal anthropometry.International journal of obesity (2005) · 2026Article
- Placental monoamine oxidase A activity in pregnancies complicated by maternal overweight/obesity and gestational diabetes mellitus.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2026Article
- Disruption of the Placenta-Brain Axis in Transgenic Mice Lacking Serotonin Transporter (SERT) in Trophoblast Cells.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Effects of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors on the placenta†.Biology of reproduction · 2025Review
- Article
- Extracellular vesicles from mouse trophoblast cells: Effects on neural progenitor cells and potential participants in the placenta-brain axis†.Biology of reproduction · 2024Article
- Maternal serotonin: implications for the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors during gestation†.Biology of reproduction · 2023Review
- Glucose, Insulin and Oxygen Modulate Expression of Serotonin-Regulating Genes in Human First-Trimester Trophoblast Cell Line ACH-3P.Biomedicines · 2023Article
- Pregnancy Complications and Neonatal Mortality in a Serotonin Transporter Null Mouse Model: Insight Into the Use of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor During Pregnancy.Frontiers in medicine · 2022Article
- Dietary Fiber Supplementation in Gestating Sow Diet Improved Fetal Growth and Placental Development and Function Through Serotonin Signaling Pathway.Frontiers in veterinary science · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
introductionThe mouse placenta accumulates and possibly produces serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine; 5-HT) in parietal trophoblast giant cells (pTGC) located at the interface between the placenta and maternal deciduum. However, the roles of 5-HT in placental function are unclear. This lack of information is unfortunate, given that selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors are commonly used to combat depression in pregnant women. The high affinity 5-HT transporter SLC6A4 (also known as SERT) is the target of such drugs and likely controls much of 5-HT uptake into pTGC and other placental cells. We hypothesized that ablation of the Slc6a4 gene would result in morphological changes correlated with placental gene expression changes, especially for those involved in nutrient acquisition and metabolism, and thereby, provide insights into 5-HT placental function.
methodsPlacentas were collected at embryonic age (E) 12.5 from Slc6a4 knockout (KO) and wild-type (WT) conceptuses. Histological analyses, RNAseq, qPCR, and integrative correlation analyses were performed.
resultsSlc6a4 KO placentas had a considerable increased pTGC to spongiotrophoblast area ratio relative to WT placentas and significantly elevated expression of genes associated with intestinal functions, including nutrient sensing, uptake, and catabolism, and blood clotting. Integrative correlation analyses revealed upregulation of many of these genes was correlated with pTGC layer expansion. One other key gene was dopa decarboxylase (Ddc), which catalyzes conversion of L-5-hydroxytryptophan to 5-HT. DISCUSSION: Our studies possibly suggest a new paradigm relating to how 5-HT operates in the placenta, namely as a factor regulating metabolic functions and blood coagulation. We further suggest that pTGC might be functional analogs of enterochromaffin 5-HT-positive cells of the intestinal mucosa, which regulate similar activities within the gut. Further work, including proteomics and metabolomic studies, are needed to buttress our hypothesis.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.