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Previous reports from this laboratory have demonstrated evidence for synthesis and release of acetylcholine (ACh) and catecholamines (CAs) by human amniotic epithelial cells (HAEC) and the presence of ACh and CAs in amniotic fluid. To study the physiological role of amniotic ACh, we used an experimental pregnant rat model for intrauterine growth retardation. Prior to this experiment, we confirmed the presence of choline acetyltransferase in the HAEC by immunocytochemical staining. Amniotic fluid was collected at 48 and 72 h after a transient ligation of the uterine vessels near the lower and upper ends of the right horn of the pregnant rat. The ACh concentration in the amniotic fluid from rats received intrauterine ischemia increased with time to a greater degree compared with the control rat, although the increase was not statistically significant. These results suggest that intrauterine hypoxic conditions cause a tendency to increase ACh concentrations in the amniotic fluid. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: Very premature infants occasionally have neurodevelopmental disabilities. However, there have been quite limited data on prenatal risk factors associated with their neurodevelopmental outcomes., Aim: To clarify the relationship between prenatal risk factors and neurodevelopmental outcomes of very premature infants., Study Design: The study design is a retrospective review., Subjects: One hundred seventy Japanese women with a singleton pregnancy and their infants whose birth weight being less than 1500 g were included. We classified those infants into 118 appropriate for gestational age (AGA) and 52 small for gestational age (SGA) infants., Outcome Measures: Infants' neurodevelopmental outcomes at 18 months of corrected age were evaluated by the Kyoto Scale of Psychological Development 2001 (KSPD). We analyzed and compared the infants' outcomes and prenatal risk factors between two groups., Results: Mortality and rate of infants unevaluable by KSPD because of severe impairment were not significantly different between those groups. However, the developmental quotient score of the cognitive-adaptive area in SGA infants born between 25 and 31 weeks of gestation was significantly lower than that in AGA infants randomly selected as gestation-matched controls. More advanced gestational age and heavier birth weight protected against adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in both groups. Moreover, male infants were related to the excess risk of adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in the SGA group., Conclusion: In view of the neurodevelopment of the infants, it seems that the most efficient obstetric strategy for improving prognosis of premature infants should be targeted to prolong the pregnancy period as long as the reassuring fetal status and maternal stable health condition are being confirmed., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)