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Published on: November 20, 2015
Helicobacter pylori's virulence and infection persistence define pre-eclampsia complicated by fetal growth
Simona Cardaropoli1, Alessandro Rolfo, Annalisa Piazzese
1Department of Obstetric and Gynecology, University of Turin, Turin 10126, Italy. simona.cardaropoli@unito.it
Aim:
To better understand the pathogenic role of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) in pre-eclampsia (PE), and whether it is associated or not with fetal growth retardation (FGR).
Methods:
Maternal blood samples were collected from 62 consecutive pregnant women with a diagnosis of PE and/or FGR, and from 49 women with uneventful pregnancies (controls). Serum samples were evaluated by immunoblot assay for presence of specific antibodies against H. pylori antigens [virulence: cytotoxin-associated antigen A (CagA); ureases; heat shock protein B; flagellin A; persistence: vacuolating cytotoxin A (VacA)]. Maternal complete blood count and liver enzymes levels were assessed at delivery by an automated analyzer.
Results:
A significantly higher percentage of H. pylori seropositive women were found among PE cases (85.7%) compared to controls (42.9%, P < 0.001). There were no differences between pregnancies complicated by FGR without maternal hypertension (46.2%) and controls. Importantly, persistent and virulent infections (VacA/CagA seropositive patients, intermediate leukocyte blood count and aspartate aminotransferase levels) were exclusively associated with pre-eclampsia complicated by FGR, while virulent but acute infections (CagA positive/VacA negative patients, highest leukocyte blood count and aspartate aminotransferase levels) specifically correlated with PE without FGR.
Conclusion:
Our data strongly indicate that persistent and virulent H. pylori infections cause or contribute to PE complicated by FGR, but not to PE without feto-placental compromise.
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