TITLE:
Mechanisms of calcium transport across the placenta: Review
AUTHORS:
Catarina Tivane, Marcio Nogueira Rodrigues, Phelipe Oliveira Favaron, Antonio Chaves de Assis Neto, Eduardo Harry Birgel Júnior, Maria Angelica Miglino
KEYWORDS:
Calcium; Transplacental; Homeostasis; Transport; Placenta
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Animal Sciences,
Vol.3 No.1,
January
24,
2013
ABSTRACT: Studies of calcium
transfer across the placenta have been reviewed because of the physiological
and nutritional importance of this mineral during pregnancy, especially in
order to better understand its contribution to development of the fetal
skeleton. The placental transfer of maternal calcium to the fetus represents a
vital mechanism for fetal development and breast-milk production, yet little
meaningful information is currently available regarding the biochemical
mechanisms involved in this process. Once again, the use of different animal
models as rodents, rabbit, sheep and bovine
have demonstrate different mechanisms of calcium transport across
the placenta and contribute to better understand its effects in both fetus and
mother during the gestation. In relation to the transfer of calcium from the
mother to fetus data suggest it occur via an active mechanism; thus calcium
concentration is higher in fetus than in maternal blood. Despite conflicting
reports, several investigators agreed that calcium concentration in the fetal
blood is mainly regulated by fetal parathyroid hormone and plasma concentration
of vitamin D3, a metabolite that plays a key role in calcium transport through
the syncytial cells.