Conisette research group led by biologist Gabriella Barrientos recognized from American Heart Association For work in which they showed that the use of thioctic acid—an antioxidant used for other diseases—improved symptoms of high blood pressure in pregnant rats, which could be used as a treatment to prevent preeclampsia. , a form of high blood pressure during pregnancy that can pose a great risk to women and the fetus.
“While one should be cautious about expectations because the study is still in the pre-clinical phase (it was not tested in humans), it is true that the results are promising given that there is already Thioctic acid has clinical uses, which allows us to see the possibility of converting the drug for use in hypertensive disorders of pregnancy”, Barrientos, a member of Laboratory of Experimental Medicine of the German Hospital,
“While one should be cautious about expectations as the study is still in the pre-clinical phase, the results are promising given that there are already clinical uses of thioctic acid, which allows us to allows to see the possibility of change”Gabriela Barrientos, biologist
The biologist and doctor of medical sciences explained that thioctic acid (or alpha lipoic acid, ALA) “is a natural compound that is produced in the mitochondria and can also be incorporated through the diet but not in large amounts, so it is Can be given as a supplement; used in this way, ALA works as a powerful antioxidant and has a strong anti-inflammatory action.
For more than 50 years, ALA has been used to treat neuropathic pain in diabetics and recently gained approval for its use in preventing reparative damage in liver transplantation in Argentina; There is also some history of clinical trials in which its application was tested in neurodegenerative diseases and in the prevention of spontaneous abortion.
“This background in particular led us to think that it could be applied to pregnancy complications, in particular gestational hypertension and preeclampsia,” explained the researcher, recalling that The investigation began in 2014, when he entered a career as a Concise researcher.,
“I started working in the German Experimental Medical Laboratory in the validation of models of spontaneously hypertensive rats to study mechanisms favoring the development of preeclampsia”, he said.
In this verification task, which was Published in the journal Molecular Human ReproductionThe group demonstrated that these mice develop the same type of changes in placenta formation that are reported in patients, in which oxidative damage plays a central role as a trigger for hypertension.
“As a result of these results, the idea arose to conduct a clinical study in this model, aimed at blocking this damage process, to see if we could reverse the manifestations of preeclampsia; thus in 2019 the Gador Laboratories’ study. Together this collaboration arose and we started working with the ALA,” he explained.
In a study commissioned by the American Scientific Society, researchers administered ALA to hypertensive rats during early pregnancy, specifically at a time when the placenta was developing.
In a study commissioned by the American Scientific Society, researchers administered ALA to hypertensive rats during early pregnancy, specifically at a time when the placenta was developing.
“The results showed that mice treated with ALA had a significant decrease in the expression of markers of inflammation and damage in the placenta and this not only translated at the maternal level, reducing the deterioration in the hypertension picture, but also improved vascular development in the placenta and consequently in fetal growth,” he said.
“In other words, this is a preclinical study (and thus, still preliminary) that suggests that ALA may have beneficial effects on the triad of affected components (maternal, placental and fetal) in the hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. It is too premature to talk about the dates, but the goal for the future is to conduct clinical trials in hypertensive patients,” he said.
Preeclampsia is one of the most severe forms of high blood pressure during pregnancy; There is currently no cure or prevention For this condition, which constitutes a high risk condition for the mother and fetus.
“The prevalence is increasing due to the general increase in cases of chronic hypertension, which is one of the main risk factors in pregnancy. It is estimated that 25 to 40% of women with chronic hypertension develop preeclampsia in pregnancy.Barrientos concluded.
