Short-term incubation of bovine placentome sections as a tool to study xenobiotic mechanism of action

Studies on the effects of various factors, including xenobiotics, on the maternal–fetal connections in the placenta are restricted by the lack of a simple and inexpensive research model. We used placentomes collected at a slaughterhouse to in vitro study the bovine sections contained integral maternal–fetal connections. The placentomes from cows (n = 4/experiment, 120–150 days post coitum) were cut using a razor blade into 60–80 mg sections and incubated in either DMEM/Ham's F-12 or M-199 supplemented with FCS (2%, 5% or 10%), amniotic fluid (AF or inactive AF, 10% or 20%) or both. The sections (n = 4/supplement) were incubated for 24 or 48 h in a water bath at 37.5 °C in an atmosphere of 5% CO2 and 95% O2. The structure and secretory activity of placentome sections were maintained when incubated in DMEM/Ham's F-12 with 2% FCS and 10% AF. M-199 was less acidified than DMEM/Ham's F-12 during incubation, and thus, this medium was better able to maintain the integrity of the placenta and the secretion of estradiol, progesterone and oxytocin for 48 h. Moreover, we detected a decrease in the expression of placenta-specific 1 (PLAC1) mRNA (an indicator of trophoblast proliferation) and an increase in the levels of keratin 8 (KRT8; a marker of normal placental barrier function) and hypoxia induced factor 1α (HIF1α; a marker of hypoxia) mRNA. These results indicate the presence of adaptation and repair mechanisms and confirm the biological activity of the placentome sections. We propose the use of placentome sections as an in vitro model to study maternal–fetal connections in cows.