Quantitative aberrations of hypermethylated RASSF1A gene sequences in maternal plasma in pre‐eclampsia

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Abstract
Objective To study if quantitative aberrations in circulating placental-derived hypermethylated RASSF1A DNA in maternal plasma are associated with pre-eclamptic pregnancies. Method Maternal plasma and placental tissues from third-trimester pre-eclamptic women and gestational-age matched normotensive controls were studied. Real-time PCR was performed to quantify RASSF1A concentrations before and after methylation-sensitive restriction digestion in a duplex assay, where ß-actin concentrations were quantified as an internal control to confirm complete enzyme digestion. Results The median concentrations of hypermethylated RASSF1A were 4.3-fold higher in maternal plasma of pre-eclamptic subjects than in controls. There was no significant difference between the extent of RASSF1A hypermethylation in placental tissues obtained from pre-eclamptic and control pregnancies. Conclusion This study demonstrated the potential utility of hypermethylated RASSF1A sequences in maternal plasma as a gender- and polymorphism-independent marker for pre-eclampsia. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.