Altered expression of TCR-CD3 zeta induced by sera from women with preeclampsia

OBJECTIVE: To investigate TCR-CD3 zeta expression by cultured T lymphocytes exposed to midtrimester sera from pregnant women in whom preeclampsia deve loped at term compared with normotensive pregnant control subjects. STUDY DESIGN: Sera obtained at 24 to 28 weeks' gestation from 16 nulliparou s women in whom preeclampsia developed at term and from 32 gestational age- matched control subjects without preeclampsia were evaluated for TCR-CD3 ze ta chain expression with use of Jurkat cells. Subsets of serum samples from 6 women with preeclampsia and 6 control subjects were then evaluated for t heir ability to induce apoptosis and to suppress interleukin-2 production. Groups were compared by use of the Kruskal-Wallis test, and P < .05 was con sidered significant. RESULTS: TCR-M chain expression in cultured T lymphocytes was suppressed in approximately 60% of untreated control subjects after incubation with sera from normotensive pregnant women compared with 30% after incubation with s era from women with preeclampsia (P < .001). T-cell apoptosis was significa ntly higher after incubation with sera from normotensive control subjects, as was the expression of the proapoptotic regulator Bax, compared with sera from women with preeclampsia. Interleukin-2 levels were higher in T cells incubated with sera from women in whom preeclampsia later developed compare d with sera from normotensive pregnant women (27.7 ng/mL versus 72.5 ng/mL; P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Nulliparous women in whom preeclampsia developed did not suppr ess TCR-CD3 zeta levels to the extent of normotensive control subjects, whi ch may be linked to decreased lymphocyte apoptosis. This occurs remotely fr om the manifestation of clinical disease and suggests a deficiency in a ser um factor in preeclampsia that may induce T cell chain suppression in norma l pregnancy.