Journal
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF REPRODUCTIVE IMMUNOLOGY
Volume 47, Issue 2, Pages 91-97Publisher
BLACKWELL MUNKSGAARD
DOI: 10.1034/j.1600-0897.2002.1o020.x
Keywords
interleukin-12; monocyte activation; preeclampsia; pregnancy; T-helper (Th)1/Th2
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PROBLEM: It has been reported that T-helper (Th) 2 dominance in normal pregnancy shifts to Th1 dominance in preeclampsia. Peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) production of interleukin (IL)-12, which induce Th1 responses, has not been compared between these clinical states. METHOD OF STUDY: Peripheral blood mononuclear cell from 35 non-pregnant women, 35 healthy pregnant women, 12 mildly preeclamptic patients, and 15 severely preeclamptic patients were cultured for 24 hr. IL-12 secretion was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Th1/Th2 ratios in PBMC were determined flow-cytometrically, and the amounts of HLA-DR and CD14 expression on the monocytes were obtained by flow cytometry. RESULTS: Peripheral blood mononuclear cell from healthy pregnant subjects secreted less IL-12 than non-pregnant women, PBMC from severely preeclamptic patients secreted more IL-12 than those from healthy pregnant subjects, while IL-12 secretion in mild preeclampsia resembled secretion in normal pregnancy. Th1/Th2 ratios correlated were positively with IL-12. Increased HLA-DR antigens and reduced CD14 expression, suggesting monocyte activation, were observed in preeclamptic patients, although monocyte counts were unchanged. CONCLUSION: Decreased IL-12 secretion by PBMC may cause Th2 dominance in normal pregnancy, while increased IL-12 secretion by activated monocytes may cause Th1 dominance in precclampsia.
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