Methods
Autopsy and Central Nervous System (CNS)
Examination
An autopsy of the fetus and placenta was performed
3 days after termination of the pregnancy,
with an extensive sampling of all organs, placenta,
and umbilical cord. Samples were fixed in
10% buffered formalin and embedded in paraffin.
Fresh tissue samples were collected for microbiologic
investigations. Brain and spinal cord were
fixed in 27% buffered formalin for 3 weeks, after
which a neuropathological examination was performed
with extensive sampling of the brain and
spinal cord. Sections of all tissue samples were
stained with hematoxylin and eosin. Immunostaining
for glial fibrillary acid protein, neurofilament,
human leukocyte antigen DR (HLA-DR),
CD3 (to highlight T cells), and CD20 (to highlight
B cells) was performed on representative
CNS samples.