Lipid fingerprinting in women with early-onset preeclampsia: A first look

ObjectivesThe aim of this preliminary study was to characterize the plasma lipid profiling of women with preeclampsia.Design and methodsPlasma samples of 8 pregnant women with early-onset preeclampsia and 8 normal pregnant women were evaluated. Lipids were extracted from plasma using the Bligh–Dyer protocol. The extracts were subjected to MALDI-MS. Data matrix was exported for partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) and a parameter VIP was employed to reflect the variable importance in the discriminant analysis. The major discriminant variables were selected and underwent to Mann–Whitney U test.ResultsA total of 1290 ions were initially identified and twelve m/z signals were highlighted as the most important lipids for the discrimination of patients with preeclampsia. The identification of these differential lipids was carried out through Lipid Database Search.ConclusionsThe main classes identified were glycerophosphocholines [GP01], glycerophosphoserines [GP03], glycerophosphoglycerols [GP04], glycosyldiradylglycerols [GL05] and glycerophosphates [GP10].

Highlight► Lipid fingerprinting in early-onset preeclampsia. ► A total of 1290 signals were identified in mass spectrometry. ► There may be a characteristic lipid metabolism in women with preeclampsia.