Presence of SARS-CoV-2 in Fetal Organs Via Intraamniotic Infection

Shengnan Wu, Linchen Tang, Zeying Liu, Meijuan Wu,Xiaoying He, Shanshan Shan, Yicheng Zhou,Ke Lin, Qingxin Xu, Shidong Tan, Ziyi Zhang, Yao Xu, Cancan Wang, Feiye Zhu,Zhiyun Wei,Liping Jin

Nature communications（2025）SCI 1区

Shanghai First Maternity and Infant Hospital

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摘要

The COVID-19 pandemic underlined the need to focus on women's health, particularly during pregnancy. Recent studies have shown that maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy may increase obstetrical risks. However, intraamniotic SARS-CoV-2 infection has been understudied. Here, we conduct inclusive autopsies on 18 fetuses following maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection to determine whether and which fetal organs can be infected by SARS-CoV-2 in utero. We analyze a total of 538 samples from 32 tissue types to comprehensively map and quantify the distribution and replication patterns of SARS-CoV-2 across fetal organs. Our observations reveal that SARS-CoV-2 can be widely distributed in fetal organs through vertical transmission. As the length of time from SARS-CoV-2 infection to termination of pregnancy increases, the prevalence of infection in fetal organs decrease. Further, proteomic profiling reveals DNA damage and immune imbalance in infected organs.

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