Transplacental Infections

AAAS: "Mapping placental infections." 'Pathogens such as the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes and the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii can cause major problems in pregnancy.' Exposure to these organisms can cause miscarriage + infection in developing babies, leading to brain infection + developmental problems. "Hoo et al. mapped the dissemination of these pathogens through the human placenta using explants derived from early-stage pregnancies, [showing] acute placental inflammation...and the cellular networks and signaling pathways mediating placental defenses and complications caused by infection." I most associate toxoplasmosis with cerebral infection in immunosuppressed patients, + listeriosis with unpasteurized milk + cheeses, an especially high risk during pregnancy. Previously there was an acronym TORCH that listed most of the intrauterine infections to which pregnant women are at risk. The 'T' stood for toxo of course. But the 'O' standing for other infections has become so expansive—syphilis, hepatitis B, varicella-zoster virus (VZV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), parvovirus B19, enteroviruses, lymphocytic choriomeningitic virus, zika, Crimean-Congo hemorrhatic fever virus + more—that TORCH can probably shuffle off into retirement. I love the complexity of infectious disease, but I bear no affection for these congenital disorders.