SIEP:
THE SOCIETY FOR THE INVESTIGATION OF EARLY PREGNANCY

1. Fertilization (Claudio Benadiva, MD, U Conn)
2. Early embryo-maternal interaction (Eytan R. Barnea, MD, SIEP/UMDNJ)
3. Blastocyst development  & implantation (Hung-Ching (Helen) Liu, PhD, Cornell U)
4. Immunology of pregnancy: an integrated view (Surendra Sharma, PhD, Brown U)
5. Embryogenesis: Developmental biology perspective (James Padbury, MD, Brown U)
6. Impact of infectious insults on the developing embryo/fetus (Erich Cosmi, MD, Sassari U, Italy)
7. The visible embryo project (Charles Paidas, MD, John Hopkins U)
8. First trimester embryo anatomical survey (Ilan Timor, MD, NY U)
9. The utility of Doppler ultrasound of the embryo/fetus, placenta and the maternal circulation (Oscar Barahonaj, RDMS, Yale U)
10. Transition to fetal period (Richard G. Lea, PhD, Aberdeen U, Scotland )
11. Regulation of hemostasis in pregnancy: Implications for adverse pregnancy outcome (Michael J. Paidas, MD, Yale U)
12. Progress in reaching early fetal viability (Ermelando V. Cosmi, MD, LaSapienza, U, Rome)
13. Novel approaches for prevention of premature labor (Nazeeh Hanna, MD, UMDNJ)
14. Postnatal consequences of adverse embryonic/fetal development (S. Marc Albini, MD, St Mary, U Conn)
15. Evidence based diagnostics for recurrent pregnancy failure (Benjamin Rivnay, PhD, Repromedix)
16. Environmental influences of the developing embryo (Elizabeth Triche, MD, Yale U)
17. Closing Remarks: (Charles Lockwood, MD, Yale U)

Events from fertilization to fetal development are the result of a series of complex, well  orchestrated, but not yet completely understood events.   Although there are redundancies in the biological systems that provide ‘failsafe mechanisms’ leading to optimal pregnancy outcome, derangements in early pregnancy, can have significant downstream effects, ultimately contributing toward disease in adult life (Barker Hypothesis).   The aim of this symposium is to provide insights into the events that result in sustaining the newly created embryo and nurturing the fetus to ensure the best possible pregnancy outcome.   Gathering an expert group from diverse backgrounds, the latest information on early pregnancy will be presented. Consideration of early pregnancy as a continuum will aid both clinicians and scientists in reproductive sciences to obtain an integrated view of this critical period in life. This symposium is especially important for reproductive immunologists since the establishment of early pregnancy depends on successful maternal recognition and the development of tolerance for the embryo. The maternal host must accommodate the embryo as a semi allograft, a unique feature of  mammalian pregnancy. Such knowledge may provide the basis for better diagnostic and therapeutic modalities to improve pregnancy outcome.