PROAND ANTIANGIOGENIC FACTORS IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF EARLY PREGNANCY LOSSES. PART 2. RATIO OF PRO-AND ANTIANGIOGENIC SERUM FACTORS IN EARLY PREGNANCY

Objective. To analyze early pregnancy changes in the ratio of pro- and antiangiogenic factors in the serum of women with a history of m iscarriage. Subjects and methods. Sixty-six patients with early pregnancy were examined. The soluble forms of VEGF, sVEGF-R1(sFlt-1), sVEGF-R2 (sKDR), MMP-2, MMP-9, TIMP-1, TIMP-2, and PLGF were determined in their sera by enzyme immunoassay, by using the standard test systems (Bender MedSystems GmbH (Austria) and R&D Systems (USA)). The f indings were used to calculate the ratios of pro- and antiangiogenic factors. Results. The findings suggest that analysis of ligand/receptor pairs may be used to characterize the processes of angiogenesis in early pregnancy. Moreover, the VEGF/VEGF-R1, VEGF/VEGF-R2, and MMP-9/TIMP-1 ratios are of the greatest informative value. The nature of intragroup changes in the VEGF/VEGF-R1 and VEGF/VEGF-R2 ratios in the examined pregnancy periods proposes that there is a unified mechanism that regulates relationships between VEGF and its receptors VEGF-R1 and VEGF-R2. The PLGF/VEGF-R1 and MMP-2/TIMP-2 ratios are of low informative value. Conclusion. The difference found in this study for the ratio of factors regulating gestational angiogenesis between the successful and unsuccessful perinatal outcome groups may be suggestive of its specif ic features and, in the non-developing pregnancy group, of impaired angiogenesis in the placental and embryonic vascular system in early pregnancy.

VEGF/VEGF-R1, VEGF/VEGF-R2, MMP-9/TIMP-1, angiogenesis, pregnancy, ratio of pro- and antiangiogenic factors, VEGF/VEGF-R1, VEGF/VEGF-R2, MMP-9/TIMP-1