Angiopoietin-2 primes infection-induced preterm delivery.

Current knowledge on the participation of angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2) in the inflammatory process and on the importance of bacterial endotoxins (LPS) in the induction of preterm delivery (PTD) led us to investigate the role of Ang-2/LPS interplay in the pathogenesis of PTD. At a first stage, Ang-2 was measured at the end of the first trimester of pregnancy in the serum of 50 women who delivered prematurely; of 88 women well-matched for age and parity who delivered full-term; and of 20 non-pregnant healthy women. Ang-2 was greater in pregnant than in non-pregnant women.