Journal article
Circulating soluble endoglin levels in pregnant women in Cameroon and Malawi-associations with placental malaria and fetal growth restriction
KL Silver, AL Conroy, RGF Leke, RJI Leke, P Gwanmesia, ME Molyneux, DT Wallace, SJ Rogerson, KC Kain
Plos One | PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE | Published : 2011
Abstract
Placental infections with Plasmodium falciparum are associated with fetal growth restriction resulting in low birth weight (LBW). The mechanisms that mediate these effects have yet to be completely described; however, they are likely to involve inflammatory processes and dysregulation of angiogenesis. Soluble endoglin (sEng), a soluble receptor of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β previously associated with preeclampsia in pregnant women and with severe malaria in children, regulates the immune system and influences angiogenesis. We hypothesized that sEng may play a role in development of LBW associated with placental malaria (PM). Plasma levels of sEng were measured in women (i) followed p..
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Awarded by National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Funding Acknowledgements
This work was supported by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) grant (MOP-13721 and MOP-115160 (KCK)), and a CIHR Team Grant in Malaria (KCK). Recruitment of Cameroon study population was supported by a National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant (5UO1AI43888 (DWT)). KLS is supported by a MITACS Elevate Postdoctoral Fellowship, ALC is supported by a CIHR Doctoral Scholarship, SJR is funded by a Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellowship (063215), KCK is supported as a CIHR Canada Research Chair. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.