The female horse has a pregnancy that in many ways is remarkably similar to pregnancies in women New research using the horse as a model points to chromosomal errors as a cause of pregnancy loss in both species Using horses as a model for human pregnancies Could further research WEDNESDAY, Aug. 7, 2024 (HeathDay News) -- Researchers are gleaning important insights into miscarriages in women from an longtime four-legged friend: horses. It shouldn't come as a surprise, since female horses have long pregnancies (11 months) and embryos of both species grow at similar rates, said a team overseen by , a professor of equine medicine at Cornell University in New York.
Their new research found that almost half (42%) of and spontaneous abortions that occurred in horses during the first two months of pregnancy were linked to a chromosomal condition called triploidy. With triploidy, the fetus contains an extra set of chromosomes that can cause complications leading to pregnancy loss, the researchers explained. So, horses make a good model for human pregnancies because, "over that embryonic period [up to eight weeks from conception], triploidy had rarely been reported in mammals outside of women,” de Mestre noted in a Cornell news release.
“The study tells us that over the first six weeks of gestation, this will likely be the primary cause of pregnancy loss following natural conception," she added. Her team published its findings Aug. 5 in the According to the research team, about 10%.