RAT EMBRYO DEVELOPMENT ON HUMAN SERA IS RELATED TO NUMBERS OF PREVIOUS SPONTANEOUS-ABORTIONS AND NUTRITIONAL FACTORS

OBJECTIVES: The objectives were to determine (1) if sera from women wi th histories of spontaneous abortions were teratogenic to cultured emb ryos more often than were sera of nonaborters, (2) if the teratogenici ty could be corrected by adding nutrients to the sera, and (3) if thes e findings were relevant to reproductive outcomes. STUDY DESIGN: Rat e mbryos were cultured for 48 hours on sera from 102 subjects who had ex perienced spontaneous abortions. Samples from 48 were retested with nu trients added and 10 took dietary supplements, were again tested with embryo cultures, and reported on their pregnancy outcomes. RESULTS: Th e frequencies of teratogenic sera increased with numbers of spontaneou s abortions (0 to greater than or equal to 5) in a manner that did not deviate from linearity (27% to 89%) (x(2) p > 0.957). Nutrient supple ments were added to 48 samples, and 40 were corrected and 10 subjects were given dietary supplement. Sera from six showed improved embryo cu ltures, and these women completed their pregnancies. CONCLUSIONS: Rat embryo cultures may provide unique insights into the causes and treatm ent of spontaneous abortions.