ANGIOGENIN PLASMA-LEVELS DURING PREGNANCY

OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to determine the levels in plasma of angiog enin in healthy pregnant women and to examine whether there are differ ences between uncomplicated pregnancies and patients with the syndrome of hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelets, preeclampsia -eclampsia, and highly pathologic Doppler flow findings without additi onal complications. STUDY DESIGN: Angiogenin was measured with a novel enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. A case control and observational s tudy was conducted in 68 healthy women from the tenth to fortieth week s of pregnancy and in 18 patients with the syndrome of hemolysis, elev ated liver enzymes, and low platelets, 21 with preeclampsia/eclampsia and 13 with highly pathologic Doppler flow findings at admission for d elivery. RESULTS: Between the tenth and fortieth weeks of uncomplicate d pregnancy angiogenin plasma levels rose from 150 to 250 ng/ml (signi ficant correlation). In patients with highly pathologic Doppler flow f indings angiogenin is significantly reduced compared with healthy preg nant matched pairs (150 vs 219 ng/ml, p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Rising pl asma angiogenin levels in pregnancy may reflect persisting placental t ransformation and remodeling processes; in patients with highly pathol ogic Doppler flow findings these processes are disturbed and thus plac ental function is impaired.