Serum and placental interleukin-18 are elevated in preeclampsia

Objectives: Interleukin-18 (IL-18) is a proinflammatory cytokine with pleiotrophic qualities and its roles in pregnancy, labor onset and pregnant complications have been proposed. However, the alterations of serum and placental IL-18 have been less investigated. The objective of the current investigation was to detect IL-18 concentrations in serum and placentas from patients with preeclampsia and women with normal pregnancy. Methods: 27 patients with preeclampsia and 28 women with normal pregnancy were recruited. Blood and placental samples were taken and IL-18 concentrations in serum and placental homogenate were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The levels of IL-18 in serum and placenta were compared between preeclampsia and control. Results: Both serum and placental levels of IL-18 were significantly increased in preeclampsia as compared with control (P = 0.014 and 0.003, respectively). Serum and placental levels of IL-18 were not significantly different in preeclamptic women who received dexomethasone and those who did not (P = 0.223 and 0.330, respectively). Serum and placental IL-18 levels were not significantly different between preeclamptic women who delivered before 36 complete gestational weeks and those who delivered after 36 complete weeks (P = 0.616 and 0.869, respectively). There were no significant differences in serum and placental IL- 18 between women with mild preeclampsia and those with severe preeclampsia (P = 0.056 and 0.357, respectively). Conclusions: Increased serum and placental levels of IL-18 were observed in preeclampsia. Those associations may offer insight into the pathogenesis of the disease. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.