• Carlos J Veas, Valeria C Aguilera, Isabel J Muñoz, Victoria I Gallardo, Patricia L Miguel, Marcelo A González, Liliana I Lamperti, Carlos A Escudero, and Claudio R Aguayo.
• Department of Clinical Biochemistry and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Concepción, P.O. Box 237, Concepción, Chile.
• J. Matern. Fetal. Neonatal. Med. 2011 Nov 1;24(11):1371-7.

ObjectivesTo evaluate the association between endothelial activation markers in the maternal circulation with nitric oxide (NO) synthesis in human umbilical endothelial cells.Study DesignThis is a case-control study of normal and pre-eclamptic pregnancies. The levels of sE-selectin, soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (sVCAM-1), and soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFlt-1) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and histamine-induced NO synthesis was detected by fluorometric examination of the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) isolated from normal and pathological pregnancies.ResultsMothers with severe pre-eclamptic pregnancies have premature and smaller babies than mothers with normal pregnancies (P < 0.05); they also have high maternal plasma levels of sVCAM-1 (∼2-fold), sFlt-1 (∼2.5-fold), and lower (∼70%) histamine-stimulated NO synthesis in HUVECs. A positive relationship between systolic blood pressure (SBP) and plasma levels of sE-selectin, sVCAM-1, and sFlt-1 was demonstrated. Moreover, levels of sE-selectin, sVCAM-1, and sFlt-1 were negatively associated with newborn weight (NBW), gestational age at delivery, and NO synthesis. Women with high E-selectin (>63 ng/ml), VCAM-1 (>752 ng/ml), and sFlt-1 (>15204 pg/ml) showed high risk (∼2-fold) for preterm delivery and very preterm delivery, or fetal weight <1500 g (∼1.5-fold) compared with women with low levels.ConclusionsHigh circulating levels of maternal endothelial dysfunction markers present in pre-eclampsia are associated with decreased NO synthesis in fetal endothelium.

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