Working out the processes underlying pre-eclampsia

An investigation of the impact of soluble Flt-1 and soluble endoglin-induced sensitisation of the endothelium to pro-inflammatory cytokines to promote preeclampsia (Miss Sophie Broadway-Stringer)

Supervised by Professor Asif Ahmed, a PhD student is working out the processes underlying pre-eclampsia, a dangerous condition which affects pregnant women and causes high blood pressure and protein in the urine. Women who develop pre-eclampsia in pregnancy are more likely to develop heart disease later in life, but we don’t understand why. Professor Ahmed’s team believes excess inflammation makes the symptoms of pre-eclampsia worse, and this might be why obesity, which causes chronic inflammation, increases the risk of developing pre-eclampsia. In pre-eclampsia, molecules which block blood vessel growth called soluble Flt-1 (sFlt-1) and soluble endoglin (sEng), and inflammatory molecules called cytokines, all rise. Researchers have found that sFlt-1 makes the endothelium, the layer of cells lining blood vessels, more sensitive to stimulation by cytokines and then becoming inflamed. In this project, the student will study these molecules in cells and mice with pre-eclampsia. They will work out the effect sFlt-1and sEng have on making endothelial cells become sensitised to cytokines. The student will also work out if sFlt-1 and sEng are important to induce pre-eclampsia in obese pregnant mice. Understanding more about the relationship between these molecules in pre-eclampsia may open up a new area of research searching for new ways to treat the condition.