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Objective: To investigate the impact of intrauterine infection induced by LPS injection on long-term brain development of premature rats., Methods: Eighteen day-gestation pregnant rats were randomly assigned to a control group receiving an intraperitoneal injection of normal saline, and two infection groups that were intraperitoneally injected with 0.3 mg/kg or 0.6 mg/kg LPS. Twenty-four hours after injection, 7 pregnant rats of each group were sacrificed. The pathological changes of the placenta after hematoxylin and eosin staining were observed under a light microscope. The neural cell apoptosis of fetal brains was examined by the TUNEL assay. The remained pregnant rats were induced to labour before 21 gestation days. The long-term brain development of premature rats was tested with the Y type electric maze on postnatal day 42., Results: Obvious pathological changes were observed in the placenta in the infection groups. The apoptotic neural cells in the fetal brain increased in the infection groups compared with that in the control group (32.41+/-5.36 in the 0.3 mg/kg infection group and 66.41+/-7.61 in the 0.6 mg/kg infection group vs 8.00+/-0.36 in the control group; P<0.01). The number of trials to criterion in the Y type maze test in the infection groups was much more than that in the control group [117.8+/-8.7 (0.3 mg/kg infection group) and 194.4+/-13.7 (0.6 mg/kg infection group) vs 56.8+/-3.7 (control group); P<0.01]. The number of correct reactions in memory retaining in the infection groups was lower than that in the control group (0.62+/-0.09 in the 0.3 mg/kg infection group and 0.37+/-0.09 in the 0.6 mg/kg infection group vs 0.92+/-0.06 in the control group; P<0.05)., Conclusions: Intrauterine infection can cause fetal rats' neural cell apoptosis and affect adversely long-term brain development of neonatal rats.

Objective: To discuss the main parasitic position of Ureaplasma urealyticum (Uu) and Mycoplasma hominis (Mh) in female genital tract., Methods: Using the standard aseptic cotton swab to collect secretion in vaginal fornix and orificium internum uteri, to culture Uu and Mh in Mycoplasma ID medium of France Bio-Merieux Co. According to double-direction quality reaction sequential test design, detection results of different position were analyzed., Results: Total positive and > or = 10(4) ccu/ml positive of Uu in vaginal fornix were significantly higher than that in orificium internum uteri. Total positive of Mh in vaginal fornix was significantly higher than that in orificium internum uteri as well., Conclusion: In order to raise the detectable rate of Mycoplasma, we suggested that the secretion in vaginal fornix position be collected.

Objective: To investigate the expression of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), GFAP mRNA and interleukin-1beta mRNA (IL-1beta mRNA), tumor necrosis factor-alpha mRNA (TNF-alpha mRNA) in neonatal rat brain after intrauterine infection., Methods: Escherichia coli (E. coli) was inoculated into both uterine horns of pregnant rats when gestation was 70% complete (15 days). The control group was treated with normal saline. The pups were killed on the postnatal day 1 (P1), P3 and P7, respectively. The cerebral white matter damage of the neonatal rats was determined by HE staining. Immunohistochemistry was used for evaluation of GFAP expression in neonatal rat brains and RT-PCR to analyze GFAP mRNA, IL-1beta mRNA and TNF-alpha mRNA expression at P1, P3 and P7., Results: The major histopathological changes in neonatal cerebral white matter at P7 after intrauterine infections were: weak staining of cerebral white matter and focal rarefaction. GFAP-positive cells were observed in both the control and the E. coli-treated groups. The numbers of GFAP-positive cells of the E. coli-treated group pups were markedly increased in periventricular white matter and hippocampus at P7 compared with those of the control group (periventricular white matter: 9.73 +/- 3.55 vs 5.67 +/- 1.90, P < 0.05 and hippocampus: 7.81 +/- 3.61 vs 2.16 +/- 1.11, P < 0.05, respectively). No significantly different levels of GFAP expression in corpus callosum were found between two groups (P > 0.05). The expression of GFAP mRNA in brain of the E. coli-treated neonatal rat was higher than the control at P1, P3 (P1: 0.25 +/- 0.07 vs 0.15 +/- 0.08, P < 0.05 and P3: 0.50 +/- 0.09 vs 0.39 +/- 0.08, P < 0.05, respectively), but the expression of GFAP mRNA in brain of the neonatal rat at P7 had no significant difference between two groups (P > 0.05). The expression of IL-1beta mRNA and TNF-alpha mRNA in brain of the E. coli-treated neonatal rat were higher than of the control at P1 (IL-1beta mRNA: 0.83 +/- 0.19 vs 0.50 +/- 0.30, P < 0.05 and TNF-alpha mRNA: 0.74 +/- 0.30 vs 0.30 +/- 0.20, P < 0.05, respectively), but the expression of IL-1beta mRNA and TNF-alpha mRNA in brain of the neonatal rat at P3 and P7 had no significant difference between two groups (P > 0.05)., Conclusions: The intrauterine infection could cause neonatal white matter damage and IL-1beta, TNF-alpha may be a mechanism mediating between the two events.

Objective: To study the route of intrauterine infection of chlamydia trachomatis (CT)., Methods: Seven hundred and seventy-two cervical samples from in women and 105 matched maternal-labom neonatal samples composed of cervical samples, cord blood, amniotic fluid, conjunctival and nasopharyngeal samples of neonate were detected by PCR-SSCP and DNA sequencing technique., Results: CT were detected in 87 of 772 (11.3%) cervical samples. In the 81 matched maternal-infant samples from pregnant women with cervical CT-positive, CT were not detected in all of the cord blood samples. In the 30 CT-positive neonatal samples, 26 were from cases of vaginal delivery and 4 from cases of caesarean section. Statistical analysis showed a significant difference between the groups of caesarean section and the vaginal delivery (P < 0.01). Four of 11 amniotic fluid samples with CT-positive were obtained during caesarean section in which 3 were without premature rupture of membranes (PROM), SSCP patients were same between maternal samples and matched neonatal samples. The sequences of amplified DNA fragments also showed the same results between maternal and match neonatal samples. No samples were found CT-positive in 24 matched maternal-infant samples from cervical CT-negative women., Conclusions: An ascending transmission from cervix to amniotic cavity was the major route for CT intrauterine infection. Transplacental passage of chlamydial infection was not confirmed. Rates of vertical transmission were significantly lower in caesarean section group than that of vaginal delivery group with maternal cervical chlamydial positive.