One of the most frequent pregnancy complications is preeclampsia, with an incidence of around 10 percent. A new study sheds some light on the mechanism that triggers it, because they believe it is related to autoimmune genes.
Preeclmapsy is a condition characterized by an increase in blood pressure during pregnancy that not treated in time can have serious consequences for the mother and affect the development of the baby.
Researchers at North Carolina State University examined the placentas of pregnant women with preeclampsia and pregnant women with a normal pregnancy and found that the placentas of women affected by preeclampsia have an excess of several genes associated with the regulation of the immune system.
Previous research had already focused on preeclampsia as an autoimmune disorder, in which the mother's body sees the placenta as an invading agent. In the same line is also this discovery.
In particular, scientists have discovered that an autoimmune mechanism is produced in cascade effect caused by the modification of an enzyme. According to them they detail:
"We found the overregulation of a particular enzyme involved in the modification of the sialic acid called SIAE. The sialic acid covers every cell of our body, which makes it possible for our immune system to distinguish between the 'own' and the 'strange'. If this process is interrupted, the body can attack itself. "
Relate preeclampsia with autoimmune genes It is a relevant discovery for scientists, a piece that fits the puzzle about the origins of this disease.
The important thing is that as a result of findings such as this, it is expected that the monitoring and care of women suffering from preeclampsia during pregnancy will be improved in order to improve their prenatal health and that of their baby.
