Conclusions
EPC count in maternal circulation may have a great potential as a novel biomarker for pregnancy monitoring and may represent the target of novel therapeutic strategies designed to prevent adverse pregnancy outcomes often occurring in IUGR.
Methods
Twenty-one non-pregnant women, 44 women during healthy pregnancy progression (9, 13 and 22 women in the first, second and third trimester, respectively) and 11 with pregnancy complicated by idiopathic IUGR were recruited in a cross-sectional study. EPCs in maternal blood were identified as CD45(dim)/CD34+ / KDR+ cells by flow cytometry. Plasmatic cytokines were measured by ELISA.
Results
We observed a significant and progressive increase of EPCs in normal pregnancy, yet detectable in early pregnancy but even more pronounced in the third trimester. The increase of EPCs was impaired in IUGR-complicated pregnancies at comparable gestational age. The circulating levels of placental growth-factor and stromal-derived-factor-1 were significantly lower in IUGR than normal pregnancies, possibly contributing to EPC impairment. Conclusions: EPC count in maternal circulation may have a great potential as a novel biomarker for pregnancy monitoring and may represent the target of novel therapeutic strategies designed to prevent adverse pregnancy outcomes often occurring in IUGR.