Placenta-derived microparticles

Abstract Microparticles (MPs), sub-micron membrane vesicles, participate in the placental and maternal crosstalk in normal pregnancies as well as in gestational vascular complications (GVC). The article will review the effects of MPs on placental physiological processes, including hemostasis, trophoblast migration, invasion, placental vasculature and their involvement in pathologic states such as thrombosis, inflammation and endothelial dysfunction, resulting in GVC.