<p>To identify pregnancy-associated changes in cervical noncoding RNA (ncRNA), including miRNA and long noncoding RNA (lncRNA), and their potential effects on biologic processes. We enrolled 21 pregnant women with term deliveries (≥37&nbsp;weeks' gestation) in a prospective cohort and collected cervical swabs before 28&nbsp;weeks' gestation. We enrolled 21 nonpregnant controls. We analyzed miRNA, lncRNA and mRNA expression, applying a Bonferroni correction. Five miRNA and three lncRNA were significantly differentially (&gt;twofold change) expressed. Putative miRNA targets are enriched in genes mediating organogenesis, glucocorticoid signaling, cell adhesion and ncRNA machinery. Differential cervical ncRNA expression occurs in the setting of pregnancy. Gene ontology classification reveals biological pathways through which miRNA may play a biologic role in normal pregnancy physiology.</p>

<p><strong>OBJECTIVE: </strong>To evaluate the association between prenatal selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) exposure and postnatal therapeutic hypothermia for suspected hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy.</p>

<p><strong>STUDY DESIGN: </strong>Matched case-control study of singleton deliveries at a tertiary hospital from 2010 to 2016. Cases were infants treated with therapeutic hypothermia for suspected hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy. Controls were noncase infants, matched on gestational age, maternal age, obstetric provider group, and hospital shift.</p>

<p><strong>RESULT: </strong>Prenatal SSRI exposure occurred in 18.4% of cases compared with 4.1% of controls (aOR: 5.9, 95% CI: 1.8-19.7). Among all cases, 36.8% had evidence of hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy on postnatal MRI. In addition, 28.6% of SSRI-exposed cases and 38.7% of SSRI-unexposed cases had MRI confirmation of hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, respectively.</p>

<p><strong>CONCLUSION: </strong>Future research to disentangle signs of SSRI exposure from true hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy may facilitate targeting therapeutic hypothermia stewardship toward infants more likely to benefit.</p>

<p>Infants born preterm are at increased risk of multiple morbidities and mortality. Why some women deliver preterm remains poorly understood. Prior studies have shown that cervical microRNA expression and DNA methylation are associated with the length of gestation. However, no study has examined the role of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in the cervix during pregnancy. To determine whether expression of lncRNAs is associated with length of gestation at delivery, we analyzed RNA from cervical swabs obtained from 78 women during pregnancy (mean 15.5, SD 5.0, weeks of gestation) who were participating in the Spontaneous Prematurity and Epigenetics of the Cervix (SPEC) Study in Boston, MA, USA. We used a PCR-based platform and found that 9 lncRNAs were expressed in at least 50% of the participants. Of these, a doubling of the expression of TUG1, TINCR, and FALEC was associated with shorter lengths of gestation at delivery [2.8 (95% CI: 0.31, 5.2); 3.3 (0.22, 6.3); and 4.5 (7.3, 1.6) days shorter respectively]. Of the lncRNAs analyzed, none was statistically associated with preterm birth, but expression of FALEC was 2.6-fold higher in women who delivered preterm vs. term (P&nbsp;=&nbsp;0.051). These findings demonstrate that lncRNAs can be measured in cervical samples obtained during pregnancy and are associated with subsequent length of gestation at delivery. Further, this study supports future work to replicate these findings in other cohorts and perform mechanistic studies to determine the role of lncRNAs in the cervix during pregnancy.</p>