Placenta in Health and Disease - Charles University Research Team

28/08/2026

Three new publications from our Placenta team! 🥳

Very happy to share three recent papers exploring different aspects of placental biology and its response to the changing environment of pregnancy:

1. Placental endocannabinoid metabolism across gestation – we identified gestational age-related changes in the placental endocannabinoid system across preterm and term birth, highlighting dynamic adaptations in endocannabinoid metabolism and signaling. Link: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1472648326004372

2. Cannabinoids and placental inflammation – using human placental explants, we show that THC, CBG, CBN and CBV modulate basal inflammatory tone and attenuate inflammatory responses following LPS stimulation, providing new insight into how cannabinoid exposure may influence placental immune function. Link: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s42238-026-00493-x

3. Maternal inflammation and the placenta–fetal brain axis – in a rat model of maternal immune activation, we demonstrate early remodeling of placental kynurenine metabolism that precedes and is associated with sex-specific changes in the fetal brain, supporting a potential role of the placenta in linking maternal inflammation with fetal neurodevelopment. Link: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s10020-026-01587-1

A great team effort across several interconnected projects, and wonderful to see these studies published together! Cilia Abad Tetiana Synova Mohammad Rida Ghaddar Fiona Kumnova Rona Karahoda Mia Souki Frantisek Staud

24/02/2026

We are pleased to share that our team has published a comprehensive review entitled “The placental tryptophan pathway across gestation: implications for pregnancy outcomes” in Human Reproduction Update, currently ranked #1 in Obstetrics and Gynecology (Impact Factor 16.1).

This publication represents the outcome of research efforts that began in 2017, when our team started systematically investigating placental tryptophan metabolism. Since then, this work has grown into a coherent research line focused on understanding how the placenta regulates serotonin, melatonin, and kynurenine pathways, and how these metabolic processes shape pregnancy outcomes and fetal neurodevelopment.

Over the years, more than 15 experimental studies have been published in this field, combining human placental models, animal studies, molecular approaches, and clinical cohort data. This research has also formed the basis of three completed PhD projects, with a fourth currently ongoing, reflecting the continuity and academic depth of this work.

The newly published review integrates international evidence with findings generated within our team, providing a comprehensive framework for understanding how placental tryptophan metabolism changes across gestation and how its dysregulation may contribute to pregnancy complications such as preterm birth, preeclampsia, and fetal growth restriction. Particular attention is given to early pregnancy as a critical window during which metabolic balance is established and fetal exposure to neuroactive metabolites is determined.

We are proud to see this body of work synthesized in one of the leading journals in reproductive science.

AbstractBACKGROUND. Tryptophan metabolism within the placenta generates bioactive metabolites, including serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine; 5-HT), melatonin,

12/02/2026

PhD students Fiona Kumnova and Mia Souki recently completed a 4EU+ funded scientific exchange at the University of Geneva in the Laboratory of Gynaecological Tumor and Development Biology, led by Prof. Marie Cohen.

During their stay, the students gained hands-on experience with advanced experimental approaches in developmental and placental biology. They learned the isolation of primary trophoblasts from first-trimester placental tissue and the generation of placental organoids from early pregnancy samples. In addition, they performed isolation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy donors and explored co-culture systems, including extravillous trophoblasts with PBMCs and with the THP-1 cell line. The exchange also provided valuable insight into how experimental design is structured and applied in ongoing research projects within Prof. Cohen’s laboratory.

Alongside day-to-day work in the lab, the visit included a joint workshop, where both teams presented their research and shared data, discussed ideas, and exchanged feedback in a highly constructive setting. Expert input from Prof. Cohen and her group contributed to refining ongoing research work while also giving the students an opportunity to engage closely with innovative projects being developed in Geneva.

Beyond the scientific programme, the exchange concluded with a memorable cultural highlight, a hands-on Swiss chocolate-making experience.

Overall, this exchange highlights the importance of the 4EU+ Alliance in enabling opportunities that help young researchers build skills, networks, and long-term international collaborations. It also strengthened the growing collaboration between the two teams. This collaboration has been recently reinforced through the accepted Horizon Europe project DataRoc, where both teams are consortium partners working on AI-generated digital twins for science.

Univerzita Karlova