Hepcidin concentrations and iron homeostasis in preeclampsia

Abstract

Plasma iron is increased in preeclampsia (PE) when compared to healthy pregnant women. This is in contrast to inflammation characteristic for PE. The link between iron homeostasis and inflammation is hepcidin. Our goal was to describe hepcidin concentrations and its association with iron homeostasis in PE. We obtained peripheral blood samples from 30 preeclamptic [gestational age: 36.5 (24-40) weeks] and 37 healthy pregnant women [gestational age: 36 (28-39) weeks] to determine plasma hepcidin and interleukin-6 (IL-6) concentrations, complete blood cell counts and parameters of iron homeostasis [plasma iron, transferrin and ferritin levels and total iron binding capacity (TIBC)]. Hepcidin was measured using mass spectrophotometry. The Mann-Whitney test was used for statistical analysis. Plasma hepcidin, IL-6, iron and ferritin concentrations were increased (p<0.05 for all), whereas plasma transferrin, TIBC and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentrations were lower (p<0.05 for all) in PE compared to healthy pregnant women. No differences were seen in the other parameters investigated. Plasma iron concentrations are increased despite high hepcidin concentrations in PE. This might indicate a resistance to the iron-decreasing action of hepcidin.