Placental Adrenomedullin and Soluble Endoglin Expression in Preeclamptic Placentas

Aim: This study aims to evaluate the placental expression levels of two recently discovered proteins, adrenomedullin (ADM) and soluble endoglin (sEng), in preeclamptic pregnancies. Materials and Methods: Placental tissue sections were obtained from 20 preeclamptic and 20 normotensive patients and processed for paraffin embedding. Hematoxylin-eosin and immunostaining methods were applied to the sections, which were then examined under a light microscope and photographed. Results: In the preeclamptic group, more intense pathological changes were observed in placental tissues compared to the control group, including an increase in Hofbauer cells, degeneration, congestion, and hemorrhage in villous capillaries. Immunohistochemical analyses revealed sEng and ADM expression in both groups, with a concentration of these proteins in cytotrophoblast and syncytiotrophoblast cells. sEng expression was 34.83% in the control group and 49.22% in the preeclamptic group, showing a significant increase (p=0.000). ADM expression was 51.72% in the control group and 22.08% in the preeclamptic group, with a significant decrease observed (p=0.000). Conclusion: We suggest that trophoblast cells play an indirect functional role in the development of preeclampsia or in response to the homeostatic disturbances it causes. We believe that further research is needed to obtain new findings that could support this hypothesis. Keywords: Placenta, Umbilical cord, Adrenomedullin, Soluble Endoglin