The pregnant Syrian hamster as a model to study intravascular trophoblasts and associated maternal blood vessel changes

In pregnant Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) used as an animal model for studying the migration of fetal trophoblasts and the associated changes in maternal blood vessels, intravascular trophoblasts migrated well beyond the blood vessels of the uterus and into the vessels of the mesometrium. They migrated beyond the decidua of the uterus, into the lumina of maternal uterine and mesometrial arteries, but not into veins. The arterial changes, which were often segmental, resembled those seen in the decidua and consisted of a replacement of normal smooth muscle cells by poorly differentiated stromal cells. Ultrastructurally, the trophoblasts were either above or below maternal endothelial cells. They occurred also as single or multiple layers within the lumina of arteries that lacked an endothelial lining. Apparent penetration of the elastic membrane by the fetal trophoblasts brought them into close apposition to maternal cells in the arterial wall. Histochemical studies showed heightened metabolic activity of the intravascular trophoblasts as suggested by strong histochemical reactions to nonspecific esterase, succinic dehydrogenase and the glycerophosphate dehydrogenase reactions. Thus, these metabolically active fetal trophoblasts actively migrate into the maternal arterial system, resulting in loss of endothelial cells and changes in the wall of the maternal arteries similar to those in the decidua at the uteroplacental junction.