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Neutrophil Infiltration and Systemic Vascular Inflammation in Obese Women

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Abstract

Obesity has become epidemic worldwide and is especially pronounced in women of reproductive age, which is important because obesity is a major risk factor for preeclampsia and chronic hypertension. We hypothesized that vascular inflammation is critical to the pathophysiology of hypertension in obese individuals because obesity and hypertensive disorders share common features related to inflammation. To study this, we collected subcutaneous fat biopsies from normal weight, overweight, and obese women and stained the tissues for CD66b, a neutrophil marker, and for activated nuclear factor-?B (NF-?B) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) as markers of inflammation. We found that the number of neutrophils per vessel and the percentage and intensity of vessel staining for CD66b, NF-?B and COX-2 were greatest in obese women and least in normal weight women, and that neutrophil infiltration and vascular inflammation significantly correlated with body mass index (BMI) and blood pressure. These data may help explain the relationship between obesity and hypertensive disorders.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Physiology and Biophysics, Virginia Commonwealth University, P.O. Box 980034, Virginia, Richmond, 23298, USA

    Tanvi J. Shah PhD, Courtney E. Leik PhD & Scott W. Walsh PhD

Authors
  1. Tanvi J. Shah PhD
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  2. Courtney E. Leik PhD
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  3. Scott W. Walsh PhD
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Correspondence to Scott W. Walsh PhD.

Additional information

Presented at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the Society for Gynecologic Investigation, March 22–25, 2006, Toronto, Canada.

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Shah, T.J., Leik, C.E. & Walsh, S.W. Neutrophil Infiltration and Systemic Vascular Inflammation in Obese Women. Reprod. Sci. 17, 116–124 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1177/1933719109348252

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1933719109348252

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