Clinical and Experimental Obstetrics & Gynecology (CEOG) is published by IMR Press from Volume 47 Issue 1 (2020). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with S.O.G.
Umbilical veins in dichorionic twins. A morpho-functional assessment
Investigations on singleton and twin pregnancies show different functional behavior on maternal-fetal relationship. In some ways twin pregnancies may be considered at risk and they may develop associated pathologies such as hypertension. The aim of this work was to evaluate the morpho-functional bethaviours of umbilical cord veins in twin and singleton gestations to better understand the role of these extra-embryonic tissues in the regulation of pregnancies. The umbilical cords were studied from singleton pregnancies and from dichorionic twin pregnancies. Biochemical and morphological investigations were carried out. A significant decrease in the anisotropy values was observed in endothelial cells from twins compared with singletons. Our ultrastructural data show immaturity features at the vein vessel wall level m twins. Furthermore, Immunohistochemical investigations showed a lower degree of expressivity concerning. adhesion molecules such as ICAM-1 and ELAM. Morphogenetic extracel lular glycoproteins like fibronectin and tenascin seem over-expressed in twin pregnancies. Our morpho-functional data well testify the lower maturation degree of umbilical cord veins in twins with respect to singletons.