ArticleEBioMedicine2023
Blockade of IL-6R prevents preterm birth and adverse neonatal outcomes.
Article in EBioMedicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers.
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Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 24 citations in OpenAlex.
- Functional brain connectivity from the fetal period through infancy: A narrative review of resting-state fMRI studies.Developmental cognitive neuroscience · 2026Review
- Urogenital immune signatures are associated with birth outcomes after maternal urinary tract infection.Science translational medicine · 2026Article
- Mono(2-Ethylhexyl) Phthalate Induces Inflammatory and Angiogenic Alterations Mediated by the PI3K/AKT Pathway in HTR-8/SVneo Trophoblastic Cells.Environmental toxicology · 2026Article
- Treg cells retain stable lineage commitment during pregnancy in mice after late gestation inflammatory challenge.Immunology and cell biology · 2026Article
- Interleukin-6 in complications of prematurity: from biomarker to targeted therapy.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2026Review
- Artemin Serves as a Novel Predictive Biomarker and Exerts a Protective Effect Against Preterm Birth.Journal of inflammation research · 2026Article
- Article
- Executive summary: Workshop on preterm birth, January 28-29, 2025, co-sponsored by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.Pregnancy (Hoboken, N.J.) · 2025Article
- A novel modulator of IL-6R prevents inflammation-induced preterm birth and improves newborn outcome.EMBO molecular medicine · 2025Article
- Placental Inflammation in Preterm Premature Rupture of Membranes and Risk of Neurodevelopmental Disorders.Cells · 2025Review
- Maternal periconception serum vitamin B12 concentration and risk of preterm birth: a prospective cohort study.BMJ open · 2025Article
- The Protective Effects of Burdock Fructooligosaccharide on Preterm Labor Through Its Anti-Inflammatory Action.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- A Multi-Algorithm Machine Learning Model for Predicting the Risk of Preterm Birth in Patients with Early-Onset Preeclampsia.International journal of general medicine · 2025Article
- Th17/Treg Cell Imbalance May Contribute to Spontaneous Preterm Labor.Journal of immunology research · 2025Review
- Homeostatic Macrophages Prevent Preterm Birth and Improve Neonatal Outcomes by Mitigating In Utero Sterile Inflammation in Mice.Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) · 2024Article
- Bibliometric Analysis on of the Impact of Screening to Minimize Maternal Mental Health on Neonatal Outcomes: A Systematic Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Review
- Article
- IL-1 and TNF mediates IL-6 signaling at the maternal-fetal interface during intrauterine inflammation.Frontiers in immunology · 2024Article
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Authors and funding
17 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundPreterm birth preceded by spontaneous preterm labour often occurs in the clinical setting of sterile intra-amniotic inflammation (SIAI), a condition that currently lacks treatment.
methodsProteomic and scRNA-seq human data were analysed to evaluate the role of IL-6 and IL-1α in SIAI. A C57BL/6 murine model of SIAI-induced preterm birth was developed by the ultrasound-guided intra-amniotic injection of IL-1α. The blockade of IL-6R by using an aIL-6R was tested as prenatal treatment for preterm birth and adverse neonatal outcomes. QUEST-MRI evaluated brain oxidative stress in utero. Targeted transcriptomic profiling assessed maternal, foetal, and neonatal inflammation. Neonatal biometrics and neurodevelopment were tested. The neonatal gut immune-microbiome was evaluated using metagenomic sequencing and immunophenotyping.
findingsIL-6 plays a critical role in the human intra-amniotic inflammatory response, which is associated with elevated concentrations of the alarmin IL-1α. Intra-amniotic injection of IL-1α resembles SIAI, inducing preterm birth (7% vs. 50%, p = 0.03, Fisher's exact test) and neonatal mortality (18% vs. 56%, p = 0.02, Mann-Whitney U-test). QUEST-MRI revealed no foetal brain oxidative stress upon in utero IL-1α exposure (p > 0.05, mixed linear model). Prenatal treatment with aIL-6R abrogated IL-1α-induced preterm birth (50% vs. 7%, p = 0.03, Fisher's exact test) by dampening inflammatory processes associated with the common pathway of labour. Importantly, aIL-6R reduces neonatal mortality (56% vs. 22%, p = 0.03, Mann-Whitney U-test) by crossing from the mother to the amniotic cavity, dampening foetal organ inflammation and improving growth. Beneficial effects of prenatal IL-6R blockade carried over to neonatal life, improving survival, growth, neurodevelopment, and gut immune homeostasis.
interpretationIL-6R blockade can serve as a strategy to treat SIAI, preventing preterm birth and adverse neonatal outcomes.
fundingNICHD/NIH/DHHS, Contract HHSN275201300006C. WSU Perinatal Initiative in Maternal, Perinatal and Child Health.
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