(Press-News.org) CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – In a study using mice, researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found that a hormone, adrenomedullin, plays a crucial role in preventing the pregnancy complication preeclampsia. Surprisingly, this hormone protects women from preeclampsia when emitted by the fetus, not the mother, during the most critical times in pregnancy.
"We've identified the fact that the baby is important in protecting the mom from preeclampsia," said the study's senior author, Kathleen M. Caron, Ph.D., Assistant Dean for Research at the UNC School of Medicine and an associate professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Physiology. "If the baby's cells are not secreting this hormone, the mother's blood vessels don't undergo the dilation that they should."
Preeclampsia affects roughly one in fifteen pregnancies. An important characteristic of the condition is that blood vessels in the placenta fail to enlarge, or dilate, to accommodate increased blood flow to the fetus. Untreated, it can threaten the life of both mother and baby.
"We really don't know that a pregnant woman is going to get preeclampsia until she has it," said Caron. Because the condition has numerous risk factors and causes, it's difficult for doctors to know which patients are at highest risk. "Identifying molecules that could predict preeclampsia would be really important."
The researchers studied mice that were genetically programmed to produce either reduced or increased levels of adrenomedullin. The study revealed that in a normal pregnancy, the fetus secretes adrenomedullin into the placenta during the second trimester, signaling special cells called "natural killer cells" to help dilate the mother's blood vessels and allow more blood to flow to the growing fetus.
The study is one of the first to identify an important chemical message sent from fetus to mother in the womb. Scientists understand more about the mom's side of the 'chemical conversation' that goes on between mother and baby, but much of the hormonal signaling in the placenta remains a mystery.
By identifying the key role of adrenomedullin, the research could pave the way to new methods for detecting and preventing preeclampsia. For example, adrenomedullin levels could potentially be used as a biomarker, or early indicator, to identify which patients might be predisposed to the condition. "Having a biomarker would be wonderful—it could allow the physician to manage a woman differently in the early part of her pregnancy," said Caron.
As a next step, the researchers plan to build upon their mouse studies to examine patterns of adrenomedullin levels and preeclampsia in pregnant women.
INFORMATION:
This paper was published online ahead of print on May 1, 2013 in the Journal of Clinical Investigation (JCI). The paper will appear in the June 2013 print edition.
The study's co-authors include Manyu Li, Nicole M.J. Schwerbrock, Patricia M. Lenhart, Kimberly L. Fritz-Six, Mahita Kadmiel, Kathleen S. Christine, Scott T. Espenschied, Helen H. Willcockson and Christopher P. Mack of UNC and Daniel M. Kraus of Duke University Medical Center.
Baby knows best: Fetuses emit hormone crucial to preventing preeclampsia
2013-05-01
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Study finds survival from cardiac arrest highest in the operating room or post-anesthesia care unit
2013-05-01
CHICAGO and ANN ARBOR, Mich. – A University of Michigan study from the "Online First" edition of Anesthesiology found cardiac arrest was associated with improved survival when it occurred in the operating room (O.R.) or post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) compared to other hospital locations. The findings offer evidence that the presence of anesthesia providers in these locations may improve outcomes for certain patients.
Cardiac arrest is a very uncommon complication during the perioperative period, which includes the time during and immediately after surgery and anesthesia. ...
Progress in introducing cleaner cook stoves for billions of people worldwide
2013-05-01
It may be the 21st century, but nearly half the world's population still cooks and heats with open fires or primitive stoves that burn wood, animal dung, charcoal and other polluting solid fuels. The article in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology describes impressive progress being made to remedy that situation and the obstacles that remain.
Susan C. Anenberg and colleagues describe the health and environmental consequences of those old-fashioned energy sources. They include an estimated 4 million deaths annually from inhalation of soot and other material ...
New evidence on how fluoride fights tooth decay
2013-05-01
In an advance toward solving a 50-year-old mystery, scientists are reporting new evidence on how the fluoride in drinking water, toothpastes, mouth rinses and other oral-care products prevents tooth decay. Their report appears in the ACS journal Langumir.
Karin Jacobs and colleagues explain that despite a half-century of scientific research, controversy still exists over exactly how fluoride compounds reduce the risk of tooth decay. That research established long ago that fluoride helps to harden the enamel coating that protects teeth from the acid produced by decay-causing ...
Reflections on chevaline
2013-05-01
Horse meat as time-honored European cuisine, its detection when mixed into meatballs and other food and the angst over consumption of chevaline in the United States, is food for a thoughtful installment of the popular Newscripts column in the current edition of Chemical & Engineering News. C&EN is the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society.
Alexander H. Tullo, C&EN senior editor, uses the story to look behind the headlines earlier in 2013 reporting discovery of horse meat in meatballs and other beef burger products ...
New research shows weekend binge drinking could leave lasting liver damage
2013-05-01
Long after a hangover, a night of bad decisions might take a bigger toll on the body than previously understood. Described in the current issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, a study at the University of Missouri has revealed a unique connection between binge drinking and the risk for developing alcoholic liver disease and a variety of other health problems.
"In our research, we found that binge drinking has a profound effect on the liver in various modes of alcohol exposure," said Shivendra Shukla, PhD, Margaret Proctor Mulligan Professor at the University ...
Breast augmentation patients report high satisfaction rates, says study
2013-05-01
Philadelphia, Pa. (May 1, 2013) – Ninety-eight percent of women undergoing breast augmentation surgery say the results met or exceeded their expectations, according to a prospective outcome study published in the May issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).
Women also report improvements in self-esteem and quality of life after breast augmentation, according to the study by ASPS Member Surgeon Dr. Eric Swanson, a plastic surgeon in private practice in Leawood, Kan. The study adds high-quality ...
Traditional ranching practices enhance African savanna
2013-05-01
New Haven, Conn.— That human land use destroys natural ecosystems is an oft-cited assumption in conservation, but ecologists have discovered that instead, traditional ranching techniques in the African savanna enhance the local abundance of wild, native animals. These results offer a new perspective on the roles humans play in natural systems, and inform ongoing discussions about land management and biodiversity conservation.
For thousands of years, pastoralists in East African savannas have penned their cattle overnight in brush-walled corrals, called bomas. Bomas remain ...
Half of US plastic surgeons market their practice via social media
2013-05-01
Philadelphia, Pa. (May 1, 2013) – Half of U.S. plastic surgeons are using Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms in their professional practice, according to a survey in the May issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).
"Social media platforms represent a dynamic and powerful tool to educate, engage, market to and directly communicate with patients and professional colleagues," writes ASPS Member Surgeon Dr. Reza Jarrahy and colleagues of University of California, Los Angeles. ...
Ferring to present safety analysis for FIRMAGON® (degarelix) at the AUA Annual Meeting
2013-05-01
San Diego, CA, USA, May 1, 2013 – The following data will be presented at the annual meeting of the American Urology Association (AUA) in San Diego, CA:
Androgen deprivation therapy by a gonadotropin releasing hormone antagonist, degarelix, lowers the risk of cardiovascular events or death when compared to luteinising hormone-releasing agonists (Abstract 781)
Date: Monday, May 6, 2013; 8:00-10:00 AM
Session/Type: Prostate Cancer: Advanced (II); Moderated Poster
Location: San Diego Convention Center, Room 7
Authors: Peter Albertsen; Bertrand Tombal; Thomas Wiegel; ...
Odor and environmental concerns of communities living near waste disposal facilities
2013-05-01
A recent study involving the University of Southampton has investigated public perception of how waste disposal sites affect residents living nearby.
Public opinion of waste management facilities can influence where sites are located and how waste management services are delivered. Obtaining the support of communities around municipal solid waste (MSW) facilities is an important part of the successful operation of these services. One common complaint from local communities concerns unpleasant smells emitted from waste disposal facilities, such as from landfill sites.
To ...