Serum levels of kynurenine in pregnancies with fetal growth restriction and oligohydramnios

Selen Yaman; Meryem Ceyhan; Necati Hancerliogullari; Esin Merve Koc; Tuba Candar; Aytekin Tokmak

doi:10.1515/jpm-2022-0446

Article

Serum levels of kynurenine in pregnancies with fetal growth restriction and oligohydramnios

Selen Yaman , Meryem Ceyhan , Necati Hancerliogullari , Esin Merve Koc , Tuba Candar and Aytekin Tokmak

Published/Copyright: January 2, 2023

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From the journal Journal of Perinatal Medicine Volume 51 Issue 5

Abstract

Objectives

Kynurinine (KYN) and its metabolites, which are released during the metabolism of tryptophan, an essential amino acid, have many important functions, such as cellular energy production, regulation of vascular tone, and regulation of the immune system. In this study, we aimed to detect serum KYN levels, which may be an indicator of KYN pathway activity, in idiopathic fetal growth restriction (FGR) and oligohydramnios cases whose pathophysiology is known to be affected by multiple factors, such as placental hypoperfusion, immune dysregulation, and maternal nutrition disorder, and to investigate their relationship with these common obstetric complications.

Methods

This cross-sectional case-control study was carried out in the antenatal outpatient clinics of Ankara City Hospital between July and December 2021. While the study group consisted of pregnant women with idiopathic isolated FGR and oligohydramnios, the control group consisted of low-risk patients who did not have any problems. The clinical features of the patients, such as age, body mass indexes, and gestational week, were recorded by measuring basic laboratory parameters and serum KYN levels.

Results

A total of 110 patients were included in this study. The patients were divided into three groups: FGR, oligohydramnios, and the control group. There was no significant difference between the patients’ ages, weeks of gestation, or body mass indexes. Serum KYN level was calculated as 57.8 ± 13.4 pg/mL in IUGR, 75.3 ± 10.8 pg/mL in oligohydramnios and 95.1 ± 13.3 pg/mL in the control group (p<0.001).

Conclusions

Serum KYN levels were lower in pregnant women complicated with FGR and oligohydramnios more prominently in pregnant women diagnosed with FGR than in normal pregnancies. The results suggest that KYN plays an important role in either the etiopathogenesis or the response to these two obstetric pathologies.

Keywords: intrauterine growth restriction; kynurenine; oligohydramnios; placenta; vascular tonus

Corresponding author: Aytekin Tokmak, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ankara City Hospital, Cetin Emec Boulevard Lizbon Street No. 2/A, Cankaya, 06460, Türkiye, Phone: + 905056335064, E-mail: aytekintokmak@gmail.com

Acknowledgments

We thank to all women participated in the study.

Research funding: None declared.
Author contributions: All authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission.
Competing interests: Authors state no conflict of interest.
Informed consent: Informed consent was obtained from all individuals included in this study.
Ethical approval: Research involving human subjects complied with all relevant national regulations, institutional policies and is in accordance with the tenets of the Helsinki Declaration (as revised in 2013), and has been approved by the authors’ Institutional Review Board (E2-21-455).

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Received: 2022-09-14

Accepted: 2022-12-08

Published Online: 2023-01-02

Published in Print: 2023-06-27

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Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/jpm-2022-0446

Keywords for this article

intrauterine growth restriction; kynurenine; oligohydramnios; placenta; vascular tonus