OBJECTIVE: Although preeclampsia (PE) is one of the most important problems affecting pregnant women, etiologic factors in its development are still unclear. We aimed to investigate the expression levels of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and inducible NO synthase (iNOS) in preeclamptic and healthy control placentas. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Placental tissue samples were obtained after delivery from patients diagnosed with PE and from normal-term pregnants and analyzed for COX-2, TNF-α and iNOS expression by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: A strong expression of COX-2 was observed in syncytiotrophoblast cells of preeclamptic placentas, which was significantly higher than that of normal placentas (p = 0.005). A mild expression of TNF-α in both normal and preeclamptic syncytiotrophoblasts was seen (p = 0.435). In addition, a strong expression of iNOS in normal syncytiotrophoblasts was found, but the intensity of the iNOS expression was highly reduced in preeclamptic placentas (p = 0.001). No correlation was detected between COX-2, TNF-α and iNOS expression levels. CONCLUSION: The findings of a decrease of iNOS expression and an increase of COX-2 expression in placenta suggest the existence of functional roles of iNOS and COX-2 in the pathophysiology of PE, probably by contributing to the reduced placental blood flow and increased resistance to flow in the fetomaternal circulation.
OBJECTIVE: Although preeclampsia (PE) is one of the most important problems affecting pregnant women, etiologic factors in its development are still unclear. We aimed to investigate the expression levels of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and inducible NO synthase (iNOS) in preeclamptic and healthy control placentas. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Placental tissue samples were obtained after delivery from patients diagnosed with PE and from normal-term pregnants and analyzed for COX-2, TNF-α and iNOS expression by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: A strong expression of COX-2 was observed in syncytiotrophoblast cells of preeclamptic placentas, which was significantly higher than that of normal placentas (p = 0.005). A mild expression of TNF-α in both normal and preeclamptic syncytiotrophoblasts was seen (p = 0.435). In addition, a strong expression of iNOS in normal syncytiotrophoblasts was found, but the intensity of the iNOS expression was highly reduced in preeclamptic placentas (p = 0.001). No correlation was detected between COX-2, TNF-α and iNOS expression levels. CONCLUSION: The findings of a decrease of iNOS expression and an increase of COX-2 expression in placenta suggest the existence of functional roles of iNOS and COX-2 in the pathophysiology of PE, probably by contributing to the reduced placental blood flow and increased resistance to flow in the fetomaternal circulation.
Authors: Marloes Dekker Nitert; Kanchan Vaswani; Melissa Hum; Hsiu-Wen Chan; Ryan Wood-Bradley; Sarah Henry; James A Armitage; Murray D Mitchell; Gregory E Rice Journal: J Nutr Sci Date: 2014-01-02
Authors: Masako Suzuki; Ryo Maekawa; Nicole E Patterson; David M Reynolds; Brent R Calder; Sandra E Reznik; Hye J Heo; Francine Hughes Einstein; John M Greally Journal: Clin Epigenetics Date: 2016-06-10 Impact factor: 6.551
Authors: Syeda H Afroze; Ram R Kalagiri; Michelle Reyes; Jacqueline D Zimmerman; Madhava R Beeram; Nathan Drever; David C Zawieja; Thomas J Kuehl; Mohammad N Uddin Journal: BBA Clin Date: 2016-05-25