Grant: Project Grant

Preeclampsia is a potentially life-threatening hypertensive disorder of pregnancy, to which there is no cure. Part of the difficulty in treating this disorder is the fact that preeclampsia can come in many different forms, one of which appears to be the result of an over-active immune system. Right now we don't fully understand this form of preeclampsia and have no viable treatment options for this group of patients. The purpose of this study is to be able to better understand what is causing disease in this subset of women. We speculate that a hyperactive immune system at the level of the uterus if causing damage to the power house (mitochondria) of cells within the placenta. As a result the placenta cells are unable to generate the energy required to perform its important functions such as nutrient and oxygen delivery to the growing fetus. Importantly, in this research project we will test whether giving medication to boost the power supply in placenta cells might be able to improve the health of these cells and hopefully be a potential treatment option for this group of preeclamptic women.