EFFECT ON MATERNAL SIGNS, PLACENTAL FUNCTION AND FETAL GROWTH

BARRIENTOS, GABRIELA; ZLATAR; YERKO; GIARDINA, GRACIELA; UCEDA, ANA; SGARIGLIA, MARÍA ALEJANDRA; ROBELLO, ELIZABETH; GARCIA, SILVIA I; GALLEANO, MÓNICA

Mar del Plata

Congreso; Reunión Conjunta SAIC SAI&FAIC SAFIS; 2022

SAIC SAI&FAIC SAFIS

Superimposed preeclampsia (SPE) occurs in 25-40% of pregnancies affected by chronic hypertension and is associated with adverse outcomes. In previous studies, we showed that pregnant Strokeprone Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat (SHRSP) spontaneously develop SPE-like features worsened hypertension with renal dysfunction, fetal growth restriction and placental insufficiency and oxidative stress. Here, we sought to evaluate the therapeutic potentialof lipoic acid (ALA), a potent antioxidant, during early pregnancy in this model. Materials and methods: Congenic timed breedings were established using SHRSP and Wistar Kyoto (WKY) females (10–12 weeks old, 200-250 g body weight, N = 10 animals/day analyzed). Upon vaginal plug detection (gestation day (GD)1), dams were assigned to two groups: ALA treatment, injected 25mg/kg body weight ALA i.p. on GD1, GD8 and GD12 and control, receiving PBS followingthe same protocol. Volume pressure recording (VPR) was used for recording systolic blood pressure (SBP) profiles throughout pregnancy. On GD20, animals were euthanized and fetoplacental specimens isolated for morphological and molecular analyzes. Statisticalanalysis was run on GraphPad Prism v 8.0, using 2 way ANOVA. Statistical significance was set at p˂ 0.05. Results: Treatment with ALA prevented the pregnancy-dependent SBP increase in the SHRSP model (SBP GD14 SHRSP: 169.3±2.1 mmHg vs. SHRSP+ALA: 146.1±3.4, p˂0.001). Furthermore, fetuses carried by ALA-treated SHRSP displayed increased weights (SHRSP: 1.75±0.05g vs. SHRSP+ALA: 1.99±0.01g, p˂0.05) on GD20. This was associated with an improved placental function in treated dams, which showed increased numbers of PAS+ cells in the junctional zone and an enhanced vessel density on Isolectin B4+ staining. Conclusion: ALAadministration improved maternal signs, placental function and fetal growth in the SHRSP model, emerging as a novel therapeutic intervention in pregnancies affected by chronic hypertension.