European journal of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology
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Eur. J. Obstet. Gynecol. Reprod. Biol. · Sep 1999
Elevated soluble adhesion molecules in women with pre-eclampsia. Do cytokines like tumour necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-1beta cause endothelial activation.
The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the clinical significance of tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) for endothelial cell activation in pre-eclampsia. Therefore, we determined and compared the correlations between these cytokines and circulating adhesion molecules in the sera of pre-eclamptic pregnant women, normotensive pregnant women and nonpregnant women. ⋯ In contrast to in vitro investigations on cultured umbilical vein endothelium, our experimental results indicate that the cytokines TNF-alpha and IL-1beta can not explain endothelial cell activation, and that their measurement in serum is not useful for the detection of pre-eclampsia.