Researchers highlight outcomes of COVID-19 transmission from mother to fetus

Researchers from Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology studied a case of vertical COVID-19 transmission from mother to her unborn child that resulted in major complications in the pregnancy, premature birth and death of the child.

The consortium then used a Skoltech-developed proteomics method to verify the diagnosis.

The paper was published in the journal Viruses detailed the effects of SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus, on maternal and perinatal outcomes are poorly understood due to limited data and research in pregnant women with COVID-19.There is some evidence suggesting vertical transmission from mother to fetus during pregnancy is possible, as, for instance, in China, immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies were found in babies born to mothers with positive SARS-CoV-2 tests.

Most known cases of COVID-19 in pregnant women have been in the third trimester of pregnancy, yet it is in the second trimester that the immune system of the mother is significantly less active.

Professor Evgeny Nikolaev, Dr Alexey Kononikhin and Dr Alexander Brzhozovskiy of Skoltech and their colleagues in the consortium report the case of a healthy 27-year-old woman who got moderately sick with COVID-19 during the 21st week of her pregnancy.