Aromatic amino acid biomarkers of preeclampsia--a nuclear magnetic resonance investigation.

OBJECTIVES

There is conflicting literature regarding the correlation between aromatic amino acid concentrations and the occurrence of preeclampsia (PE). The object of this study was to test whether these molecules could enable discrimination between healthy and preeclamptic pregnancies when detected using (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.

METHODS

Plasma samples from 11 normotensive and 11 preeclamptic pregnant women were analyzed using (1)H-NMR. The the aromatic region of the spectrum was divided into regions of uniform size. The area of each region was subjected to principal component analysis.

RESULTS

A distinction was made between normal and preeclamptic pregnancies on the basis of histidine, tyrosine, and phenylalanine concentrations. The concentration of histidine was significantly higher in the plasma of patients with PE than in that of normotensive women (p = 0.003).

CONCLUSION

(1)H-NMR-based analysis of biofluids is capable of differentiating between patients with and without preeclampsia.