[Do Leptin and Neuropeptide Y Influence Blood Pressure Regulation in Healthy Pregnant Women and Women with Preeclampsia?]

Unlabelled: Leptin (LP) and neuropeptide Y (NPY) are involved in the regulation of appetite and energy expenditure. As was shown in our previous studies healthy non pregnant and pregnant women are characterized by a significant positive correlation between maternal body mass index (BMI) and plasma leptin concentration. On the other side participation of both leptin and obesity in the pathogenesis of essential hypertension is presumed. The present study aimed to answer the following question: to what extend LP and NPY are involved in the pathogenesis of arterial hypertension in pregnant women with EPH gestosis. One to 2 days before delivery plasma LP and NPY concentration were estimated in 43 healthy pregnant women, in 18 pregnant women with EPH gestosis and in 26 healthy non pregnant women. In pregnant women with EPH gestosis, mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) (114.6 +/- 1.3 mm Hg) and mean leptinaemia (21.9 +/- 8.5 ng/ml) were significantly higher than in healthy pregnant women (89.1 +/- 0.9 mm Hg and 15.0 +/- 1.3 ng/ml respectively) and in non pregnant women (MAP--91.56 +/- 1.4 mm HG i LP--10.9 +/- 1.7 ng/ml). In healthy pregnant women, in women with EPH gestosis and in healthy nonpregnant women plasma NPY concentrations were of similar magnitude (42.3 +/- 4.1 vs 43.7 +/- 8.5 vs 50.7 +/- 6.1 pg/ml respectively). In pregnant women with EPH gestosis a significant positive correlation was found between diastolic blood pressure or MAP and plasma NPY concentration. Leptinaemia was significantly correlated with systolic, diastolic and MAP respectively only when results obtained in both groups of pregnant women were analyzed together.

Conclusions: 1) leptin seems to be involved in the regulation of blood pressure both in healthy and preeclamptic pregnant women, 2) participation of NPY in the pathogenesis of hypertension in preeclamptic women is likely.