Novel Molecular Biological Approaches for the Diagnosis of Preeclampsia

Although the birth experience has never been as safe for mothers and children as today, the puzzling pregnancy-related disease called “preeclampsia” still occurs in 2–10% of all pregnancies. Despite some therapeutic progress, it is still one of the leading causes of maternal and fetal mortality in the developed and developing world. Preeclampsia, which usually occurs late in the second or, more frequently, in the third trimester of pregnancy, is characterized by the occurrence of pregnancy-induced hypertension, edema, and proteinuria in a woman with no prior incidence of these sequelae (1). The association of hemolysis, increased liver enzymes, and low platelets (the so-called HELLP syndrome) puts not only the child, but also the mother, at severe risk. Preeclampsia preferentially affects the firstborn of a particular partner (2). The etiology of the disease is still unknown, although research suggests that the trophoblast is unable to effectively invade the decidua or to modify the spiral artery walls (3).A serious clinical shortcoming is clearly represented by the fact that no reliable test exists to identify those women at risk for developing the disorder early enough in their pregnancies to permit preventive treatment (4). Current treatment is thus restricted to symptomatic management with drugs …