# Gestationally driven trafficking of decidual lymphocytes assessed by serial intravascular staining

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON · 2024 · $194,375

## Abstract

The decidua is a specially modified mucosa that harbors a unique composition of leukocytes. Despite the
importance of maternal-fetoplacental immune interactions during pregnancy, the gestationally-driven population
dynamics of decidual leukocytes has been difficult to ascertain, and the transition from the menstrual cycle to
early pregnancy is not readily studied in human pregnancy. Disturbance of the mechanisms that regulate
population maintenance and trafficking of decidual leukocytes at the maternal-fetal interface is thought to
underlie morbidity and mortality in pregnancy (i.e., preeclampsia, preterm labor, fetal growth restriction) and
presents a powerful diagnostic and therapeutic target. Thus, this R21 Exploratory/Developmental Grant
application aims to establish a novel pregnant macaque model defining trafficking of peripheral blood cells to the
decidua using the novel technique of serial intravascular staining (SIVS) with the following Specific Aims.
Specific Aim 1: To determine the trafficking and population dynamics of decidual lymphocytes, including
decidual NK cells, in pregnant rhesus monkeys. We will test the hypothesis that trafficking from the peripheral
blood and proliferation and apoptosis of tissue-resident decidual lymphocytes drive population dynamics across
pregnancy. Further, the distribution of these lymphocytes with respect to the decidual vasculature will provide
insight into their function and mechanisms of trafficking.
Specific Aim 2. To determine the trafficking of peripheral blood lymphocytes, including NK cells, to the
nonpregnant endometrium. We will test the hypothesis that the trafficking of lymphocytes to the developing
maternal-fetal interface is initiated in the late luteal phase of the menstrual cycle, independent of the presence
of an embryo or developing placenta.
Our proposed studies will answer the following fundamental questions: Which lymphocytes actively traffic
between systemic vasculature and decidual residency during pregnancy? What is the balance of cell proliferation
and cell death of decidua-resident lymphocytes across gestation? What is the distribution of trafficking and
resident lymphocytes relative to the vasculature within the decidua? And, is trafficking from the blood to the
uterus initiated in the luteal phase in preparation for the establishment of pregnancy? Determining the origin and
dynamics of decidual lymphocytes is necessary to advance the hypothesis of their pivotal role in hemochorial
placentation into clinically actionable intelligence. The R21 Exploratory/Developmental Grant mechanism
supports research projects in their early and conceptual stages. The application of the SIVS paradigm to the
pregnant nonhuman primate model could have a major impact on our understanding of the reproductive
immunology of the maternal-fetal interface. Furthermore, these methodologies for assessing trafficking of
immune cells in vivo in the nonhuman primate model will be powerful tools to apply t...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10873209
- **Project number:** 5R21AI175753-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON
- **Principal Investigator:** Aleksandar Stanic-Kostic
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $194,375
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-07-01 → 2026-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10873209

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10873209, Gestationally driven trafficking of decidual lymphocytes assessed by serial intravascular staining (5R21AI175753-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10873209. Licensed CC0.

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