Pregnancy is a unique condition where the maternal immune system is continuously
adapting in response to the stages of fetal development and signals from the environment …

A better understanding of the underlying mechanisms by which signals from the fetus initiate
human parturition is required. Our recent findings support the core hypothesis that oxidative …

It has been considered for a long time that the vascular endothelium is a simple barrier
which prevents direct contact between blood cells and the tissue of the vascular wall …

I. Introduction E NDOTHELIN (ET) is a potent vasoconstrictive peptide which was originally
isolated from the conditioned medium of cultured endothelial cells (1). It comprises 21 …

Endothelins are the most potent naturally occurring vasoconstrictors yet discovered. Both
normal and abnormal pregnancies are associated with significant changes in vascular …

Preeclampsia is a mainly vascular disease of pregnancy, probably caused by an imbalance
between vasodilator and vasoconstrictor agents that results in generalized vasospasm and …

Objective: Enhanced production of endothelin‐1, due to endothelial cell dysfunction has
been considered to be the cause of increased plasma levels of endothelin‐1 in …

Endothelins (ET-1, ET-2 and ET-3) are a family of 21 amino acid peptides produced by
endothelial cells. They are thought to regulate the local vasomotor tone with endothelium …

Adrenomedullin (AM) is a novel vasorelaxant peptide, isolated from human
pheochromocytoma. Although AM may be involved in the regulation of the cardiovascular …

Tens of thousands of children deliver before they are full term each year. Although many
social, environmental, and medical risk factors have been suggested, the etiology of a large …