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Implication of umbilical cord in preeclampsia
Ragaa H M Salama1, Mohamed M F Fathalla, Abdel-Raheim M Mekki
1Department of Biochemistry, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt. ragaa_2002 @ yahoo.com
Objectives:
To investigate the role of biochemical changes in the umbilical cord and placenta in developing preeclampsia (PE).
Subjects And Methods:
Thirty women with PE and 15 healthy pregnant women as controls were enrolled in this study. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 1 (sVEGFR-1), platelet-derived endothelial cell growth factor (PD-ECGF), neutrophil elastase and nitric oxide (NO) were measured.
Results:
Both serum (maternal and fetal) and tissue (placenta and umbilical cord) levels of VEGF, sVEGFR-1, PD-ECGF and neutrophil elastase were significantly increased, whereas NO was significantly decreased (except placental tissue showed no changes) in preeclamptic patients. The cord serum level of PD-ECGF was significantly higher in severe PE compared to mild PE and normal pregnant women. The placental and cord tissue levels of PD-ECGF and neutrophil elastase were significantly higher in severe PE, while the cord tissue level of NO was significantly lower in severe PE.
Conclusion:
Our data showed that umbilical cord vessels and stroma can serve as an additional source of vasoactive and angiogenic substances that contribute to the biochemical changes occurring in PE.
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