title: Is the imbalance between pro-angiogenic and anti-angiogenic factors associated with preeclampsia?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Preeclampsia (PE) is a multisystem disease characterized by the development of hypertension and proteinuria. Although PE etiology is not fully known, the placenta seems to play a central role in the development of disease. The inadequate placentation process results in a change in angiogenic factors levels, such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), placental growth factor (PlGF), soluble form of endoglin (s-Eng) and soluble form of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor type 1 (sFlt-1).
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this review was to clarify if the imbalance between pro-angiogenic and anti-angiogenic factors is associated with PE.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  It is known that inadequate placentation process is the primary mechanism suggested for PE occurrence and angiogenic factors are involved in this process. The state-of-the-art suggests that progress in grasp the imbalance of pro-angiogenic and anti-angiogenic factors is essential for the improvement of knowledge about PE. The development of prospective, longitudinal studies with serial determinations of these factors throughout pregnancy is needed to better assess the relevance of these markers for understanding the etiology, prevention, diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of this challenging disease.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Clínica Médica, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil.
authors.forename: Letícia Lemos
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Jardim
authors.affiliation: Campus Centro Oeste Dona Lindu, Universidade Federal de São João Del-Rei, Brazil.
authors.forename: Danyelle Romana Alves
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Rios
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Análises Clínicas e Toxicológicas, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil.
authors.forename: Luíza Oliveira
authors.initials: LO
authors.lastname: Perucci
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Análises Clínicas e Toxicológicas, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lirlândia Pires
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: de Sousa
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Análises Clínicas e Toxicológicas, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil.
authors.forename: Karina Braga
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Gomes
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Análises Clínicas e Toxicológicas, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil. Electronic address: lucidusse@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Luci Maria S
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Dusse
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy; D011247:Pregnancy
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers
keywords: Angiogenesis; Endoglin; PlGF; Preeclampsia; VEGF; sFlt-1