Chapters authored
Angiogenesis-Related Factors in Early Pregnancy Loss
The habitual loss of early pregnancy is one of the major problems of obstetrics nowadays, provided that the cause of more than 50% of all early pregnancy losses is unknown. Adequate angiogenesis is one of the main indicators of proper formation of placental system, making the basis of fetal life support. The objective description of angiogenesis in physiological development of pregnancy and in pathological conditions is complicated by the difficulties in obtaining and characterizing placental tissue in early pregnancy. Thus, angiogenesis‐related factors are promising indicators to characterize angiogenesis in pregnancy. This chapter draws attention to alteration in angiogenesis‐related factors in peripheral blood of patients with habitual early pregnancy losses. Investigation of factors (vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), sFlt‐1, sKDR, metalloproteinase (MMP)‐2, MMP‐9, tissue inhibitor (TIMP)‐1, TIMP‐2 and placental growth factor (PLGF)), which specifically and nonspecifically regulate angiogenesis in pregnancy, was performed in the most significant terms for placentogenesis: 6 weeks, 7–8 weeks and 11–14 weeks of pregnancy. It was found that in a missed abortion there was a significant imbalance of angiogenesis‐related factors compared with normal pregnancy. These results reflect a disturbance of angiogenesis in a missed abortion and point to the importance of the studied factors in the pathogenesis of early pregnancy losses.
Part of the book: Physiologic and Pathologic Angiogenesis
Endothelial Dysfunction as a Consequence of Endothelial Glycocalyx Damage: A Role in the Pathogenesis of Preeclampsia
The endothelial glycocalyx is an intravascular compartment which consists of carbohydrate part of membrane glycoconjugates, free proteoglycans and associated proteins. It is thought to play an important role in the vascular tone regulation, vascular permeability and thromboresistance. It was suggested that the leading cause of endothelial dysfunction in various cardiovascular, inflammatory, and kidney diseases is the damage of the endothelial glycocalyx. This review presents the changes in the composition and structure of the endothelial glycocalyx in the settings of damage and under systemic inflammatory response, and the impact of these changes on the functions of endothelial cells and intercellular contacts, mediating the interaction of endothelium and the immune cells. The second issue, discussed in this article is a possible role of endothelial glycocalyx in the pathogenesis of preeclampsia—a complication of pregnancy associated with hypertension, proteinuria and edema. The reviewed data contribute a new insight in the endothelial dysfunction pathogenesis.
Part of the book: Endothelial Dysfunction