TIME COURSE OF CHANGES IN THE SOLUBLE FORMS OF CELL ADHESION, MOLECULES IN PREECLAMPSIA

Objective. To study the time course of changes in the soluble forms of cell adhesion molecules (CAM), such as sICAM- 1, sVCAM-1, sL-selectin, and sE-selectin, in the sera of women during physiological and varying preeclampsia-complicated pregnancy. Subjects and methods. Fifty-three patients at 8 to 41 weeks of gestation with complications and 73 women with physiological pregnancy and labor, who were matched for age, parity, and deliveries in the history, were followed up. The soluble forms of CAM (sE-selectin, sL-selectin, and sVCAM-1) were determined in the sera of pregnant women by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using the test systems (Bender MedSystems GmbH, Austria). Results. There is a pronounced imbalance in CAM levels in preeclampsia. In patients at high risk for preeclampsia, deviations in the blood content of sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1 may be a marker for the prediction of preeclampsia throughout their pregnancy and deviations in sL-selectin levels may be a marker in the early periods. Conclusion. The sensitivity and specificity of these tests suffice to predict the development of preeclampsia just during early pregnancy. When the blood level of CAM is in excess of its certain threshold concentrations, the highrisk group patients may be presumed to have an 80% chance of developing preeclampsia. When the preeclampsia worsens, blood tests for the above CAM forms, along with other specific assays, will allow the risk of perinatal complications to be predicted.

sICAM-1, sVCAM-1, pregnancy, preeclampsia, cell adhesion molecules, sICAM-1, sVCAM-1, sL-selectin, sE-selectin