Circulating heat shock protein 27 (HSPB1) levels in prediction of pre-eclampsia: A pilot study.

Objective: To determine whether circulating heat shock proteins HSP27/HSPB1 and HSP90α/HSPC1 may be useful for early prediction of the occurrence of pre-eclampsia in asymptomatic women.

Methods: We have measured by ELISA the levels of HSPB1, HSPC1, and placental protein 13 (PP13) in serum samples from 44 women in the first trimester (10-12 weeks) and second trimester (17-20 weeks) of pregnancy. Western blot and immunohistochemistry for HSPB1 and HSPC1 were performed.

Results: HSPB1 serum levels were higher in women with pre-eclampsia than in normotensive pregnant women at the first and second trimester (P = 0.003), whereas PP13 levels decreased in women with pre-eclampsia only in the first trimester of gestation (P = 0.021). We also observed higher HSPB1 levels in patients with early-onset pre-eclampsia in the first and second trimester (P = 0.014).

Conclusion: This pilot study points out that circulating HSPB1 levels in first and second trimester might be useful for predicting the occurrence of pre-eclampsia in asymptomatic women. Further validation studies are needed to finally establish this protein as a candidate predictive biomarker of pre-eclampsia.