Abstract
BackgroundZonulin has been implicated in many metabolic disorders including hypertension and obesity. However, there is insufficient information about the involvement of zonulin in pregnancy induced hypertension (PIH) which comprises preeclampsia (PE) and gestational hypertension (GH). This study was therefore aimed at finding the level of this biochemical marker of regulation of tight junctions among women with PIH.MethodsA total of 88 women with PIH and 60 age and body mass index (BMI) matched healthy pregnant women controls were enrolled. Blood pressure at 11–13 weeks and after 20 weeks of gestation, body mass index (BMI) in addition to serum Zonulin levels and lipid profile were compared between the groups. Student’s t-test was used for comparisons of the mean between the two groups. Correlation analyses were performed using Pearson’s correlation and binary logistic regression was used to evaluate the factors associated with PIH.ResultsZonulin level was significantly higher in the participants with PIH as compared to the normal pregnant controls 56.81 ± 7.72 ng/ml vs 40.4 ± 8.60 ng/ml p < 0.0001 and had strong positive correlation with PIH (OR = 1.805; CI1.139–1.275; p < 0.0001). However, the association between first trimester lipids and PIH was weak.ConclusionThe results showed a strong positive correlation between zonulin and PIH, thus changes in intestinal permeability occur in early stages of pregnancy and may be involved in the pathogenesis of PIH.
Highlights
Zonulin has been implicated in many metabolic disorders including hypertension and obesity
Due to the involvement of zonulin in many Chronic inflammatory disease (CID), including its role in blood pressure elevation and the fact that to date, no relationship between zonulin levels and pregnancy induced hypertension (PIH) in Ghanaian community has been documented, we investigated the relationship between zonulin levels and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy among Ghanaians in AborWeme, a community in the Volta region of Ghana
Comparison of the biochemical parameters between the participants revealed no significant difference in the TG and Low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) but there were significant differences in the Total cholesterol (TC), High density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) and Very low density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL)
Summary
Zonulin has been implicated in many metabolic disorders including hypertension and obesity. Recent evidence shows a relation between gut pathology and microbiome with hypertension in animal models. This association in humans is yet to be fully elucidated. The most important regulator of tight junctions (TJs) is human zonulin, a 47-kDa human protein that increases the permeability of the small intestine. It increases gut permeability by reversibly modulating the TJs, ensuring normal functions of the TJs as well as maintaining physiological processes in the intestines [1]. The actual mechanism of disturbed placentation is still unknown though the role of the proinflammatory factors have scientific plausibility
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