Haemoglobin, globin and iron in preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction

Preeclampsia (PE) is a severe pregnancy condition that affects ~8.5M women worldwide annually.

The aetiology of PE is poorly understood, and its diagnosis is currently based on maternal symptoms: high blood pressure (BP) and organ damage including fetal growth restriction (FGR) manifesting after 20 weeks of gestation. Reducing BP is the only known treatment for PE and delivery is the only cure.

Women with PE have a 3-fold higher risk of developing hypertension or fatal strokes later in life compared to healthy pregnancies.

Over the last two decades, we have discovered that high levels of haemoglobin metabolites and low levels of their scavenger proteins may contribute to the oxidative stress and inflammation seen in PE. To make matters worse, air pollution increases the risk of developing PE by stimulating these processes.

The overarching goals for the proposal are A) to delineate the role of Hb, globin and iron metabolism in PE pathology, and long-term vascular consequences, B) to study amplifying effects on inflammation and placental function by altered gut microbiota and exposure to air pollutions, and C) to evaluate new therapeutic candidate therapies for PE and long-term vascular effects.In the short term, this 5-year research program will harness translational methodology to clarify the PE etiology.

Long-term goals are to clinically implement new biomarkers for the prediction of PE and cardiovascular risk and develop new efficacious treatment strategies for PE and FGR.