Inflammatory reactions and implantation : the new entries PTX3 and D6

Successful embryonic implantation implies anchoring the conceptus in the maternal uterine wall, establishing a vascular supply to enable optimal growth and development of the conceptus, and promoting tolerance of fetal alloantigens encoded by paternal genes. To achieve these goals, complex molecular dialogues take place among the maternal endometrium, the conceptus, and the placenta. Several factors are involved in the fetal-maternal interaction, including hormones, growth factors, cytokines, chemokines, adhesion molecules, extracellular matrix components, and matrix-degrading enzymes. This complex cross-talk results in the induction of a local inflammatory response and a state of systemic inflammation, as revealed by leukocytosis, endothelium activation, increased activity of innate immune cells, and increased levels of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines. The enriched cytokine milieu associated to implantation is likely to control trophoblast migration and differentiation, leukocyte influx and activation, complement activation, as well as angiogenic and angiostatic processes in the implantation site. Finally, these mediators play a key role in tuning the immune responses to protect the fetus from infections as well as from maternal rejection. Here, the role of pro-inflammatory networks activated in implantation will be discussed. In particular, emphasis will be put on two new players involved in regulating inflammation at the maternal-fetal interface: the long pentraxin PTX3 and the decoy receptor for inflammatory chemokines D6.