Abstract:
Over the years there has been an increased incidence of maternal health
problems including high maternal death. Though pregnancy-related
complication such as sepsis, severe bleeding, unsafe abortions, and unskilled
health personnel have been implicated to this high maternal mortality rate, also
the effect of hypertensive diseases such as pre-eclampsia and infectious
diseases like placental malaria are major complications of pregnancy. Studies
have not specifically outlined the mechanisms of pre-eclampsia aetiology and
therefore it remains poorly understood. However, a multifactorial aetiology
has been proposed with several risk factors. Significant numbers of studies
have established an association between pre-eclampsia and placental malaria
in Africa. Also, the rise in pre-eclampsia is occurring against the background
of malaria infection in malaria endemic regions though malaria prevalence has
decreased in recent times. Expressions of cyclooxygenase (COX) and
lipoxygenase (LOX) are reported to be involved in pregnancy-related
pathology such as pre-eclampsia and placental malaria. This study sought to
assess whether the association between pre-eclampsia and placental malaria is
through induction of either COX-1, COX-2, or 15-LOX by malaria infection.
Study participants were pregnant women reporting for routine antenatal care.
Using RT-PCR, we quantified the expression levels of the mRNA genes of
COX-1, COX-2, and 15-LOX from placental tissue of the participants. The
study established that the odds of developing pre-eclampsia are 2.09 greater
for women with placental malaria compared to women without exposure,
confirming the association between placental malaria and pre-eclampsia
development. The study also demonstrated a significant increase in mRNA
levels for COX-2 in pre-eclampsia women with placental malaria. Placental
malaria could play a role in pre-eclampsia by inducing production of COX-2
leading to inflammation and consequently pre-eclampsia.
