TY  - EJOU
AU  - Bouyou-Akotet, Marielle K. 
AU  - Kombila, Maryvonne 
AU  - Kremsner, Peter G. 
AU  - Mavoungou, Elie 

TI  - Cytokine profiles in peripheral, placental and cord blood in pregnant women from an area endemic for <i>Plasmodium falciparum</i>
T2  - European Cytokine Network

PY  - 2004
VL  - 15
IS  - 2
SN  - 1952-4005

AB  - During gestation, inflammatory cytokines are sometimes more abundant than growth-promoting
cytokines, and via direct or indirect effects, proinflammatory cytokines lead to intrauterine growth retardation.
We used an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to measure the concentrations of three proinflammatory
cytokines, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-12 (IL-12p40), as well as interleukin-15 (IL-15) and
monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1), in plasma from peripheral, placental and cord blood of thirty pregnant
Gabonese women. All of these women lived in Libreville and Lambaréné, two malaria hyperendemic areas.
IL-12p40 concentrations were higher in cord blood than in placental or peripheral blood. The MCP-1
concentration was higher in placental blood, than in peripheral or cord blood. IL-15 concentrations were similar
at the three sites. MCP-1 concentrations were higher in the placentas of primiparous women than in those of
multiparous women. The highest concentrations were found in infected placentas. IL-15 concentrations were
significantly higher in peripheral and placental plasma from uninfected women than in plasma from infected
women. Strong positive correlations were found between placental and cord IL-12p40 and IL-15 plasma
concentrations. Likewise, a strong positive correlation was found between IL-12p40 and MCP-1 concentrations in
cord and peripheral plasma. These results suggest that placental, maternal peripheral and cord blood present
different cytokine profiles in response to <i>P. falciparum</i>.
KW  - placental
KW  -  cord blood
KW  -  pregnant women
KW  -  <i>Plasmodium falciparum</i>
KW  -  MCP-1
KW  -  cytokine

DO  -