The placenta is essential for the efficient delivery of nutrients and oxygen from mother to
fetus to maintain normal fetal growth. Dysfunctional placental development underpins many
pregnancy complications, including fetal growth restriction (FGR) a condition in which the
fetus does not reach its growth potential. The FGR placenta is smaller than normal placentae
throughout gestation and displays maldevelopment of both the placental villi and the fetal
vasculature within these villi. Specialized epithelial cells called trophoblasts exhibit …