Evidence mapPaperPMID 40708725Full record

ArticleFrontiers in endocrinology2025

Pre-conditioning with PQQ during pregnancy alleviates LPS-induced placental damage and improves the fetal survival and growth in mice.

Yongli Han, Yan Zhu, Xiaohui Lu, Tingting Fan, Yina Yin, Pengfei Liu, Xiuliang Dai, Hongbin Xu

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in endocrinology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Yongli HanDepartment of Nursing, Changzhou Hygiene Vocational Technology College, Changzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Yan ZhuObstetrics and Gynecology Department, The Second People's Hospital of Changzhou, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Changzhou, China.
Xiaohui LuThe Center for Reproductive Medicine, Changzhou Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changzhou Medical Center, Nanjing Medical University, Changzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Tingting FanObstetrics and Gynecology Department, The Second People's Hospital of Changzhou, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Changzhou, China.
Yina YinObstetrics and Gynecology Department, The Second People's Hospital of Changzhou, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Changzhou, China.
Pengfei LiuThe Department of Animal Center, Kebiao Medical Testing Center, Changzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Xiuliang DaiThe Center for Reproductive Medicine, Changzhou Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Changzhou Medical Center, Nanjing Medical University, Changzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Hongbin XuObstetrics and Gynecology Department, The Second People's Hospital of Changzhou, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Changzhou, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Intrauterine infection is a major cause of preterm birth, fetal demise, and growth restriction. Placental damage resulting from such infections plays a central role in mediating these adverse outcomes. Pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ) is a naturally occurring nutrient known for its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and mitochondrial-supporting properties. This study aimed to investigate whether pre-conditioning with PQQ during pregnancy could mitigate adverse effects induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-mediated inflammation in mice. Methods: Pregnant mice were randomly assigned to three groups: control, LPS, and LPS + PQQ. On gestational day (GD) 16.5, mice in the LPS groups were intraperitoneally injected with either a single dose of 3 μg/mouse (moderate inflammation) or two doses of 3ug/mouse (severe inflammation) of LPS. In the LPS + PQQ group, PQQ was administered daily from GD 0.5. Outcomes assessed included labor time, fetal survival, fetal and placental weights. Placental structure, vascular networks, inflammation, oxidative stress, and gene expression profiles were evaluated using H&E staining, immunohistochemistry, Prussian blue staining, and RNA sequencing. Results: Pre-conditioning with PQQ significantly alleviated LPS-induced fetal demise and reduced fetal and placental growth. PQQ also improved placental morphology, restored vascular integrity, and normalized aberrant gene expression profiles. Furthermore, PQQ treatment markedly reduced placental inflammation and oxidative stress in mice exposed to moderate LPS. However, under high-dose LPS conditions, PQQ failed to confer significant protective effects. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that Pre-conditioning with PQQ during pregnancy can protect against inflammation-induced placental damage and improve fetal survival and growth under moderate inflammatory conditions. This study provides compelling proof-of-concept that PQQ buffers the placenta against maternal systemic inflammatory insults. However, its efficacy appears limited in the context of severe inflammation.

Indexed as

Fetal DevelopmentLipopolysaccharidesPlacentaPQQ CofactorAnimalsFemaleInflammationMiceOxidative StressPregnancyLipopolysaccharidesPQQ Cofactorfetal healthintrauterine infectionplacental damagepre-conditioningpyrroloquinoline quinone

Identifiers

PMID40708725
PMCPMC12286791

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.