title: Comparison of angiotensin-converting enzyme, malonaldehyde, zinc, and copper levels in preeclampsia.
abstract: Preeclampsia is a syndrome of unknown etiopathogenesis. Recent studies carried out on preeclampsia have focused on the increase in free radicals in the feto-placental unit with poor perfusion. It is believed that the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) has a role in the poor perfusion of the placenta. It is uncertain whether there is a pre-existing impairment in RAS in pre-eclamptic pregnant women or not. In the present study, we measured angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), malonaldehyde (MDA), zinc, and copper levels in the placental tissue of 16 pre-eclamptic pregnant women and compared them with those in 20 healthy pregnant women. Whereas ACE activity and MDA were found to be high in the placentas of pre-eclamptic patients, zinc and copper levels were low and there was a negative correlation between ACE activity and zinc concentration. These findings suggest that high ACE activity might play a role in the increase in tissue hypoxia and consequent lipid peroxidation through vasoconstriction; zinc deficiency in the placental tissue might cause insufficiency of superoxide dismutase, an antioxidant enzyme. Furthermore, deficiency in placental zinc also plays a role in the biosynthesis of connective tissue, maintaining its integrity, which might have an impact on the structure of the spiral arteries.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Karaelmas University, Zonguldak, Turkey.
authors.forename: Serefden
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Açikgoz
authors.forename: Muge
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Harma
authors.forename: Mehmet
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Harma
authors.forename: Gorkem
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mungan
authors.forename: Murat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Can
authors.forename: Selda
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Demirtas
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003300:Copper / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008315:Malondialdehyde / Q000378:metabolism*; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A / Q000378:metabolism*; D010920:Placenta / Q000378:metabolism*; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000378:metabolism*; D011247:Pregnancy; D012084:Renin-Angiotensin System / Q000502:physiology; D015032:Zinc / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D008315:Malondialdehyde; D003300:Copper; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A; D015032:Zinc