HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Keelan, J. A. Articles by North, R. A. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Keelan, J. A. Articles by North, R. A.

Serum Activin A, Inhibin A, and Follistatin Concentrations in Preeclampsia or Small for Gestational Age Pregnancies

From Liggins Institute and Division of Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacology, and Division of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Auckland Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, Auckland, New Zealand; Clinique et policlinique d’obstétrique, Maternité de Geneve, Geneva, Switzerland; and Centre for Proteins and Peptides, School of Biological and Molecular Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Headington, Oxford, United Kingdom.

Address reprint requests to: Jeffrey A. Keelan, University of Auckland, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, Liggins Institute and Division of Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacology, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand; E-mail: j.keelan{at}auckland.ac.nz.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether maternal serum activin A, inhibin A, and follistatin concentrations in idiopathic small for gestational age (SGA) pregnancies are similar to those in normal pregnancies or elevated as in preeclampsia.

METHODS: Maternal serum activin A, inhibin A, and follistatin concentrations were determined in 1) nulliparous women with idiopathic SGA (birth weight <10th percentile; n = 18), preeclampsia (systolic blood pressure 140 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure 90 mmHg plus proteinuria 2+or >0.3 g/24h; n = 22), and normotensive controls, matched for gestational age at sampling (n = 22), and 2) a longitudinal series of samples collected at five intervals throughout pregnancy from nulliparous women with idiopathic SGA (n = 19), preeclampsia (n = 22), preeclampsia plus SGA (n = 15), or who had uncomplicated pregnancies (n = 20).

RESULTS: Serum concentrations of activin A and inhibin A were similar in idiopathic SGA pregnancies to controls. In preeclampsia, activin A and inhibin A levels were markedly increased compared with controls or women with idiopathic SGA (P < .001), particularly in those with early-onset disease. Follistatin concentrations were only modestly (<twofold) elevated in preeclampsia (P < .001). In the longitudinal study, serum activin A or inhibin A concentrations were increased in women who later developed preeclampsia, whereas in women with idiopathic SGA pregnancy, a small overall increase in activin A levels was observed.

CONCLUSIONS: In contrast to women with preeclampsia, normotensive women with SGA pregnancies do not have markedly elevated circulating levels of activin A and inhibin A. These data support the hypothesis that increased serum activin A concentrations in preeclampsia may be a manifestation of maternal disease rather than just a marker of abnormal placentation.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				D. S. Tannetta, S. Muttukrishna, N. P. Groome, C. W. G. Redman, and I. L. Sargent Endothelial Cells and Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells Are a Potential Source of Extraplacental Activin A in Preeclampsia J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., December 1, 2003; 88(12): 5995 - 6001. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				D. Casagrandi, C. Bearfield, J. Geary, C.W. Redman, and S. Muttukrishna Inhibin, activin, follistatin, activin receptors and {beta}-glycan gene expression in the placental tissue of patients with pre-eclampsia Mol. Hum. Reprod., April 1, 2003; 9(4): 199 - 203. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]