The relative fatty acid composition of serum lecithin in preeclampsia.

Fasting vein blood samples were drawn from 12 women with an early, and from 14 women with a late, onset of preeclampsia and, in addition, from 21 normal pregnant women at comparable gestational length. The relative fatty acid composition of serum lecithin was an analyzed by gas-liquid chromatography. There seemed to be more pronounced fatty acid changes between early and late start of preeclampsia than between severe and mild preeclampsia as defined in terms of maternal symptoms. In the preeclamptic groups, palmitic acid increased and stearic acid decreased as among the normal pregnant women, suggesting a similar amount of lecithin synthesized along pathway. 1. Linoleic acid was reduced in preeclamptic patients as compared to normal pregnant women. This finding seems to be associated partly with the increased incorporation of longer polyunsaturated fatty acids and partly with the increased incorporation of nonessential monoenoic fatty acids. The increased content of longer polyunsaturated fatty acids in serum lecithin might indicate a further reinforcement of the deacylation-reacylation cycle in preeclampsia. Linoleic acid reduction may be associated with intrauterine growth retardation.