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Preeclampsia (PE) differentially impairs female and male fetal endothelial cell function, which is associated with an increased risk of adult‐onset cardiovascular disorders in children born to mothers with PE. However, the underlying mechanisms are poorly defined. We hypothesize that dysregulation of microRNA‐29a‐3p and 29c‐3p (miR‐29a/c‐3p) in PE disturbs gene expression and cellular responses to cytokines in fetal endothelial cells in a fetal sex‐dependent manner. RT‐qPCR analysis of miR‐29a/c‐3p was performed on female and male unpassaged (P0) human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) from normotensive (NT) pregnancies and PE. Bioinformatic analysis of an RNA‐seq dataset was performed to identify PE‐dysregulated miR‐29a/c‐3p target genes in female and male P0‐HUVECs. Gain‐ and loss‐of‐function assays were conducted to determine the effects of miR‐29a/c‐3p on endothelial monolayer integrity and proliferation in response to transforming growth factor‐β1 (TGFβ1) and tumour necrosis factor‐α (TNFα) in NT and PE HUVECs at passage 1. We observed that PE downregulated miR‐29a/c‐3p in male and female P0‐HUVECs. PE dysregulated significantly more miR‐29a/c‐3p target genes in female vs. male P0‐HUVECs. Many of these PE‐differentially dysregulated miR‐29a/c‐3p target genes are associated with critical cardiovascular diseases and endothelial function. We further demonstrated that miR‐29a/c‐3p knockdown specifically recovered the PE‐abolished TGFβ1‐induced strengthening of endothelial monolayer integrity in female HUVECs, while miR‐29a/c‐3p overexpression specifically enhanced the TNFα‐promoted cell proliferation in male PE HUVECs. In conclusion, PE downregulates miR‐29a/c‐3p expression and differentially dysregulates miR‐29a/c‐3p target genes associated with cardiovascular diseases and endothelial function in female and male fetal endothelial cells, possibly contributing to the fetal sex‐specific endothelial dysfunction observed in PE. Key points: Preeclampsia differentially impairs female and male fetal endothelial cell function in responses to cytokines. Pro‐inflammatory cytokines are elevated in maternal circulation during pregnancy in preeclampsia.MicroRNAs are critical regulators of endothelial cell function during pregnancy. We have previously reported that preeclampsia downregulated microRNA‐29a‐3p and 29c‐3p (miR‐29a/c‐3p) in primary fetal endothelial cells. However, it is unknown if PE differentially dysregulates the expression of miR‐29a/c‐3p in female and male fetal endothelial cells.We show that preeclampsia downregulates miR‐29a/c‐3p in male and female HUVECs and preeclampsia dysregulates cardiovascular disease‐ and endothelial function‐associated miR‐29a/c‐3p target genes in HUVECs in a fetal sex‐specific manner.MiR‐29a/c‐3p differentially mediate cell responses to cytokines in female and male fetal endothelial cells from preeclampsia.We have revealed fetal sex‐specific dysregulation of miR‐29a/c‐3p target genes in fetal endothelial cells from preeclampsia. This differential dysregulation may contribute to fetal sex‐specific endothelial dysfunction in offspring born to preeclamptic mothers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aim was to investigate ball movement patterns using network analysis techniques, to compare between successful and unsuccessful outcomes and teams in the Australian Football League (AFL). This analysis focused on possession chains starting from a kick-in (n = 1,720), drawn from all games played in the 2015 AFL Premiership season (18 teams, 206 games). Player interactions were quantified using four network metrics: cluster coefficient, degree centrality, network density, and entropy. Three-way ANOVA with Tukey post hoc and ω2 effect sizes were calculated to assess whether differences existed between kick-in outcomes, ladder brackets, and match outcomes for each network metric. No significant differences were observed between ladder brackets or match outcomes for any network metric. More successful kick-in chains were characterised by lower density (ω2 = 0.26, large effect; F(9, 1678) = 66.6, p < 0.00) and higher entropy (ω2 = 0.17, large effect; F(9, 1678) = 39.6, p < 0.00). This suggests that chains resulting in successful kick-in outcomes exhibited lower interconnectedness, with a high number of players involved, and lower predictability in ball movement patterns. These findings have practical value for coaches and performance analysts and support further applications of network analysis in Australian football. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]