Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2023 Sep;90(3):e13755.
doi: 10.1111/aji.13755.

The function of decidua natural killer cells in physiology and pathology of pregnancy

Fangfang Jin  1 , Wei Liu  2   3 , Guan Cheng  4 , Songchen Cai  2   3 , Tailang Yin  1 , Lianghui Diao  2   3
Affiliations
Review

The function of decidua natural killer cells in physiology and pathology of pregnancy

Fangfang Jin et al. Am J Reprod Immunol. 2023 Sep.

Abstract

The role of decidual natural killer (dNK) cells in maintaining immune tolerance at the maternal-fetal interface during pregnancy is a significant topic in reproductive health. Immune tolerance is essential for a successful pregnancy and involves a complex immune response involving various immune cells and molecules. DNK cells comprise the largest population of lymphocyte subsets found in the decidua and play important roles in maintaining immune tolerance. These cells exert multiple functions to maintain homeostasis of the decidual microenvironment, including modulation of trophoblast invasion, promotion of fetal development, regulation of endometrial decidualization and spiral artery remodeling. DNK cells can also be divided into different subsets based on their functions as NKtolerant , NKcytotoxic , and NKregulatory cells. However, the relationship between dNK cells function and pregnancy outcomes is complex and poorly understood. In this review, we will focus on the physiological role of dNK cells during pregnancy and highlight the potential role in pathological pregnancies and therapeutic approaches.

Keywords: decidua natural killer cells; decidualization; embryo implantation; spiral artery remodeling.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

REFERENCES

    1. Sojka DK, Yang L, Plougastel-Douglas B, Higuchi DA, Croy BA, Yokoyama WM. Cutting edge: local proliferation of uterine tissue-resident NK cells during decidualization in mice. J Immunol. 2018;201(9):2551-2556.
    1. Lee JY, Lee M, Lee SK. Role of endometrial immune cells in implantation. Clin Exp Reprod Med. 2011;38(3):119-125.
    1. Riggan L, Freud AG, O'Sullivan TE. True detective: unraveling group 1 innate lymphocyte heterogeneity. Trends Immunol. 2019;40(10):909-921.
    1. Dons'koi BV, Chernyshov VP, Sirenko VY, Strelko GV, Osypchuk DV. Peripheral blood natural killer cells activation status determined by CD69 upregulation predicts implantation outcome in IVF. Immunobiology. 2014;219(3):167-171.
    1. Taylor EB, Sasser JM. Natural killer cells and T lymphocytes in pregnancy and pre-eclampsia. Clin Sci (Lond). 2017;131(24):2911-2917.

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources