Neonatal oxidative stress depends on oxygen blood pressure in umbilical artery

With advancing gestation, partial pressure of oxygen (pO2) and pH fall significantly. Hypoxia is a main factor inducing free radical generation and thereby oxidative stress (OS). Placental and fetal tissue response when oxygen becomes restricted is complex and partially known. We tested the hypothesis that changes in umbilical artery and vein blood gas concentrations modulate OS occurrence in the newborn. Seventy umbilical artery and vein plasma samples were collected from healthy term newborns immediately after delivery. F2 Isoprostanes (F2-Isop) were measured in all samples as reliable markers of lipid peroxidation. Significantly lower pCO2 and higher pO2 and pH were found in umbilical vein than in artery, as expected. A positive correlation was detected between pH and pO2 only in umbilical artery (p=0.019). F2-Isop levels were no different between artery and vein in cord blood. Significant correlations were found between F2-Isop and pCO2 (p=0.025) as well as between F2-Isop and pH in umbilical vein (p=0.027). F2-Isop correlated with pCO2 (p=0.007) as well as with pO2 values (p=0.005) in umbilical artery blood. Oxidative stress (OS) in newborns depends on oxygen concentrations in umbilical artery. OS biomarkers significantly correlate with pO2 and in umbilical artery but not in umbilical vein. In normoxic conditions fetal-maternal gas exchanges occurring in placenta re-establish normal higher oxygen levels in umbilical vein than artery, with a normal production of free radicals without any deleterious effects.