Identification of Deficiencies and Establishment of Predictive Assays for Enigmatic Pregnancy Complications
Collaborators
- Surendra Sharma, MBBS, PhD, Women and Infants Hospital
- James Padbury, MD, Women and Infants Hospital
- Zahir Shaikh, PhD, University of Rhode Island
Summary
Pregnancy complications such as preeclampsia and intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) affect 10-15% of pregnancies. These complications can cause maternal and fetal mortality, but there origins remain unknown. This collaboration will utilize expertise from both Women and Infants Hospital and the University of Rhode Island to better understand the mechanisms underlying the nature of these complications.
This project aims to use serum taken from afflicted patients to identify novel protein(s) that may cause these traumatic complications. The team will utilize state-of-the-art technology, found at the University of Rhode Island's INBRE facility, to aid with the protein(s) identification.
Once the potential protein(s) are identified, experimental models will aid in finding those that can save pregnancy and those that cause complications like preeclampsia. The team will use the results from this work to apply for future funding, and also expects to patent its technology.
