Fügedi Gergely, Molnár Miklós, Rigó János, Schönléber Júlia, Kovalszky Ilona, Molvarec Attila
First Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Semmelweis University, Baross utca 27, Budapest, H-1088, Hungary.
Institute of Pathophysiology, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary.
BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2014 Dec 2;14:395. doi: 10.1186/s12884-014-0395-x.
The endocannabinoid system plays a key role in female reproduction, including implantation, decidualization and placentation. In the present study, we aimed to analyze cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1), CB2 and fatty acid amid hydrolase (FAAH) expressions and localization in normal and preeclamptic placenta, in order to determine whether placental endocannabinoid expression pattern differs between normal pregnancy and preeclampsia.
Eighteen preeclamptic patients and 18 normotensive, healthy pregnant women with uncomplicated pregnancies were involved in our case-control study. We determined CB1, CB2 and FAAH expressions by Western blotting and immunohistochemistry in placental samples collected directly after Cesarean section.
CB1 expression semi-quantified by Western blotting was significantly higher in preeclamptic placenta, and these findings were confirmed by immunohistochemistry. CB1 immunoreactivity was markedly stronger in syncytiotrophoblasts, the mesenchymal core, decidua, villous capillary endothelial and smooth muscle cells, as well as in the amnion in preeclamptic samples compared to normal pregnancies. However, we did not find significant differences between preeclamptic and normal placenta in terms of CB2 and FAAH expressions and immunoreactivity.
We observed markedly higher expression of CB1 protein in preeclamptic placental tissue. Increased CB1 expression might cause abnormal decidualization and impair trophoblast invasion, thus being involved in the pathogenesis of preeclampsia. Nevertheless, we did not find significant differences between preeclamptic and normal placental tissue regarding CB2 and FAAH expressions. While the detailed pathogenesis of preeclampsia is still unclear, the endocannabinoid system could play a role in the development of the disease.
内源性大麻素系统在女性生殖过程中发挥关键作用，包括着床、蜕膜化和胎盘形成。在本研究中，我们旨在分析大麻素受体1（CB1）、CB2和脂肪酸酰胺水解酶（FAAH）在正常胎盘和子痫前期胎盘中的表达及定位，以确定正常妊娠和子痫前期胎盘内源性大麻素的表达模式是否存在差异。
18例子痫前期患者和18例血压正常、妊娠过程无并发症的健康孕妇参与了我们的病例对照研究。我们通过蛋白质印迹法和免疫组织化学法测定剖宫产术后直接采集的胎盘样本中CB1、CB2和FAAH的表达。
蛋白质印迹法半定量分析显示，子痫前期胎盘中CB1的表达显著更高，免疫组织化学法也证实了这一结果。与正常妊娠相比，子痫前期样本中的合体滋养层细胞、间充质核心、蜕膜、绒毛毛细血管内皮和平滑肌细胞以及羊膜中，CB1免疫反应性明显更强。然而，在子痫前期胎盘与正常胎盘之间，我们未发现CB2和FAAH的表达及免疫反应性存在显著差异。
我们观察到子痫前期胎盘组织中CB1蛋白的表达明显更高。CB1表达增加可能导致蜕膜化异常并损害滋养层细胞浸润，从而参与子痫前期的发病机制。尽管如此，我们并未发现子痫前期胎盘组织与正常胎盘组织在CB2和FAAH表达方面存在显著差异。虽然子痫前期的确切发病机制仍不清楚，但内源性大麻素系统可能在该疾病的发生发展中发挥作用。
