Neutrophil oxygen radical production in pre-eclampsia with HELLP syndrome

To determine whether severe pre-eclampsia complicated by hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, low platelets (HELLP) syndrome alters neutrophil oxygen radical production.

Neutrophils were obtained from 10 healthy non-pregnant, 9 normal pregnant and 9 women with severe pre-eclampsia with concurrently HELLP syndrome. Oxygen radical production was evaluated using luminol-enhanced chemiluminescence and measured by cytochrome C reduction. Furthermore we incubated sera from cases and controls with isolated healthy neutrophils and measured their capacity to generate oxygen radicals.

Unstimulated neutrophil oxygen radical production was significantly lower in severe pre-eclamptics compared with healthy non-pregnant and pregnant subjects, whereas phorbol ester-induced oxygen radical production did not differ among categories. Cytochrome C reduction of unstimulated neutrophils showed similar results. Healthy neutrophils incubated with sera from pre-eclamptics enhanced the oxygen radical production significantly more than neutrophils incubated with sera from the healthy subjects.

Severe pre-eclampsia is characterised by decreased unstimulated neutrophil oxygen radical production. This may be the result of an exhausted cellular response due to stimulation by a factor present in the serum of these patients.