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Multi-omics analysis of human placentas from first year of the COVID-19 pandemic reveals sex-dependant effects

GSE318446 Homo sapiens (human) RNA-seq (gene expression) 66 samples Submitted 2026/02/05 Platform GPL34281
At a glance

RNA-seq (gene expression) · human · 66 samples

What it is
RNA-seq (gene expression)Gene activity measured by sequencing. The summary does not mention single-cell work, so this is most likely bulk: one average per sample, the usual starting point for comparing groups.
Organism
Homo sapiens (human)
Samples
66 samples: 66 samples, each with a distinct title — no replicated groupsGroups are read from the sample names, not from the paper. Check the list below.
Data you can get
A processed table (series matrix) and supplementary files from NCBI; the raw sequencing reads from ENA. Which of these hold counts depends on the study, so check the file list.
Paper
SARS-CoV-2 infects human primary cytotrophoblasts mainly through a non-canonical entry routeMolecular human reproduction · 2026
Summary (written by the submitters)
The COVID-19 pandemic affected millions of pregnant persons, yet the consequences of maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection on the placental function and the fetal health remain poorly characterized. While inflammatory and structural alterations have been described in placentas from exposed pregnancies, the underlying molecular mechanisms are still unclear.
Read the full summary ↓
The aim of this study was to evaluate transcriptomic alterations in placentas exposed to maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID+) compared to unexposed placentas (COVID-). We analyzed 67 placentas collected between March 2020 and June 2021 from singleton pregnancies with (n = 41) or without (n = 26) a history of maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy. Demographic, obstetric, placental, and fetal data were extracted from the medical records. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was not detected in any placental sample. Bulk RNA-sequencing was performed on villous biopsies preserved either frozen or in RNALater. Global transcriptomic analysis comparing COVID+ and COVID- placentas revealed an upregulation of genes involved in cytoskeleton organization. Stratified analysis by fetal sex identified a marked sex-specific response, with 43 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in placenta from female fetuses (XX) in the COVID+ group compared to COVID-, whereas only one DEG was identified in placenta from male fetuses (XY). In XX COVID+ placentas, pathways related to cytoskeleton organization, pregnancy specific processes, and muscle development were altered. These results highlight a sex-specific dysregulation of placental gene expression following maternal SAR-CoV-2 infection, predominantly affecting placentas from female fetuses.
Published in
SARS-CoV-2 infects human primary cytotrophoblasts mainly through a non-canonical entry route
Pinatel H, Brien ME, Broquière M et al. · Molecular human reproduction 2026 · PMID 41755626 · doi:10.1093/molehr/gaag015
This dataset
Open GSE318446 in finder → Find more human RNA-seq datasets →
Download · which file do I need?

Direct links to NCBI and ENA, no account and no request form. Pick by what you want to do: take the small processed table to look, the supplementary files to re-analyse, or the original raw data to start over.

1 · Just have a look

Processed table

The series matrix: one table of values per sample as the submitters processed it. The smallest download, and it opens in Excel or R. Start here to see what the data look like.

Series matrix ↓
2 · Re-analyse it

Supplementary files

The count tables and other files the authors uploaded. Take only the samples you need, or the whole study as GSE318446_RAW.tar (it can run to tens of gigabytes).

All supplementary files ↗ Whole study · RAW.tar ↓
3 · Start from the raw reads

Raw sequencing reads

The original FASTQ files, straight from the sequencer, held at ENA. Large, and you align them yourself, so only choose this if you need to re-process the study from scratch.

Raw reads on ENA ↗

What the files usually look like: For RNA-seq the counts are usually a table among the supplementary files (look for 'counts', 'expression', 'FPKM' or 'TPM' in the file name). The series matrix of a sequencing study is sometimes nearly empty.

Also filed as BioProject PRJNA1418740 and SRA study SRP674649. Searching any of these in the dataset finder brings you back here.

NCBI GEO page ↗ Paper (PMID 41755626) ↗
Study design
66 samples, each with a distinct title — no replicated groups

Any grouping that defines a comparison lives in the sample characteristics, which GEO records separately from the titles.

How we read this: Read from 66 sample titles: 66 distinct titles with little repetition. These groups are guessed from the sample names, not taken from the paper, so check them against the sample list below before relying on them.

Samples in this study

+ 26 more — browse all 66 samples with per-sample file links →

Datasets on a similar topic

Search all human RNA-seq datasets in GEO →

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