Toxoplasma gondii dictates placental trophoblast lineage specification through induction of decidual signaling cues [TO_bulkRNA-seq]

The placenta acts as a protective barrier to most infectious agents, though a few are capable of bypassing its defenses. Little is known about how exposure to these select pathogens impacts ongoing placental development.

We demonstrate thatToxoplasma entirely misdirects the developmental program of trophoblast stem cells. Infection of progenitor cytotrophoblasts prevents fusion and differentiation to infection-resistant syncytiotrophoblasts. Rather, Toxoplasma elicits a transcriptional profile that polarizes cytotrophoblasts to the infection-permissive extravillous trophoblast fate across three orthogonal models: trophoblast stem cells, trophoblast organoids, and chorionic villi.