Fetal endothelium dysfunction is associated with circulating maternal levels of sE-selectin, sVCAM1, and sFlt-1 during pre-eclampsia.

Objectives: To evaluate the association between endothelial activation markers in the maternal circulation with nitric oxide (NO) synthesis in human umbilical endothelial cells.

Study Design: This is a case-control study of normal and pre-eclamptic pregnancies. The levels of sE-selectin, soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (sVCAM-1), and soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFlt-1) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and histamine-induced NO synthesis was detected by fluorometric examination of the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) isolated from normal and pathological pregnancies.