Plasma levels of S100B during pregnancy in women developing pre-eclampsia

S100B is suggested to be a peripheral biomarker of central nervous system injury with increased blood-brain barrier permeability. The aim of this study was to investigate if there is a difference in plasma levels of S100B throughout pregnancy between women developing pre-eclampsia and those who did not.

A nested case-control study within a longitudinal study cohort was performed. Healthy pregnant women were enrolled and plasma samples were collected at gestational weeks 10, 25, 28, 33 and 37. Levels of S100B throughout pregnancy were analyzed with an ELISA assay.

The levels of S100B did not change between gestational weeks 10 and 37 (0.047 vs. 0.052; p=0.71) in the healthy controls, but the S100B levels increased between corresponding weeks in women who developed pre-eclampsia (0.052 vs. 0.075; p<0.05). In gestational weeks 33 and 37 women who developed pre-eclampsia had higher levels of S100B than the controls (p=0.047 and p=0.010, respectively).

S100B levels increase during pregnancy in women who develop pre-eclampsia and there is an increased S100B level in women who develop pre-eclampsia compared with healthy pregnancies several weeks before clinical symptoms of the disease. The increased amount of plasma S100B in women developing pre-eclampsia might be secondary to cerebral vascular damage and S100B is a potential peripheral biomarker reflecting cerebral involvement in pre-eclampsia.