title: Angiopoietin-2: a promising indicator for the occurrence of severe preeclampsia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The known connection between placental hypoxia and the development of preeclampsia suggests that angiogenic factors in the placenta would be changed and affect the maternal and/or umbilical cord plasma levels in patients with preeclampsia.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to determine the difference and correlation of placental mRNA expression and maternal/umbilical cord plasma concentrations of vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), angiopoietin-1, and angiopoietin-2 between women with severe preeclampsia and normal pregnancies.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixteen patients with severe preeclampsia and 29 normotensive pregnant women were studied. The placental mRNA expression was assessed using real-time quantitative RT-PCR analysis. Maternal/umbilical cord plasma levels were measured using an enzyme-linked immunoassay. Nonparametric methods were applied for statistical analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  . Placental mRNA expression of angiopoietin-2 was significantly increased in patients with severe preeclampsia (p < 0.001). The maternal plasma angiopoietin-2 protein level was also significantly increased in women with severe preeclampsia (p < 0.05) and showed a positive correlation with the placental mRNA expression of angiopoietin-2 (r = 0.54, p < 0.005). For VEGF-A and angiopoietin-1, there were no significant differences between the two groups. A maternal plasma angiopoietin-2 concentration of 8.4 ng/mL had a sensitivity of 63% and a specificity of 83% for predicting severe preeclampsia.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Placental angiopoietin-2 mRNA expression was increased and correlated with the maternal plasma angiopoietin-2 protein concentration in women with severe preeclampsia. This suggests that the plasma angiopoietin-2 protein level may be a candidate marker for severe preeclampsia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Soo Yeon
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Jong Kwan
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Jun
authors.forename: Cha-Hui
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Joong Shin
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Hee Chul
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Syn
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D042683:Angiopoietin-1 / Q000097:blood*; D042702:Angiopoietin-2 / Q000097:blood*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005312:Fetal Blood / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D010920:Placenta / Q000378:metabolism*; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000097:blood*; D011247:Pregnancy; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000097:blood*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: C467630:ANGPT1 protein, human; D042683:Angiopoietin-1; D042702:Angiopoietin-2; D012333:RNA, Messenger; C467484:VEGFA protein, human; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A