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Cell-Free Nucleic Acids for Early Prediction of Preeclampsia

  • Preeclampsia (A Kattah, Section Editor)
  • Published:
Current Hypertension Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

This review summarizes the potential of cell-free nucleic acids for predicting preeclampsia, contrasts them with other methods, and discusses these findings’ relevance to preeclampsia’s pathogenesis and care.

Recent Findings

Recent studies have demonstrated the utility of cell-free nucleic acids in early preeclampsia risk prediction. Encouragingly, nucleic acid measurement exhibits similar or better sensitivity as compared to standard screening assays and furthermore sheds light on preeclampsia’s underlying placental biology.

Summary

Over the past decade, liquid biopsies measuring cell-free nucleic acids have found diverse applications, including in prenatal care. Recent advances have extended their utility to predict preeclampsia, a major cause of maternal mortality. These assays assess methylation patterns in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) or gene levels in cell-free RNA (cfRNA). Currently, preeclampsia care focuses on blood pressure control, seizure prevention, and delivery. If validated, early prediction of preeclampsia through liquid biopsies can improve maternal health and deepen our understanding of its causes.

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Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: • Of importance

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Morten Rasmussen for helpful discussion. M. N. M is supported by a Stanford Science Fellowship. V. D. W. is supported by H&H Evergreen Fund.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Stanford, CA, USA

    Mira N. Moufarrej

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Stanford, CA, USA

    Virginia D. Winn

  3. Department of Bioengineering and Applied Physics, Stanford, CA, USA

    Stephen R. Quake

  4. Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Stephen R. Quake

Authors
  1. Mira N. Moufarrej
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  3. Stephen R. Quake
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Contributions

M.N.M. wrote the main manuscript text. All authors reviewed and edited the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mira N. Moufarrej.

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Conflict of Interest

S. R. Q. is a founder, consultant, and shareholder of Mirvie and receives royalties from Stanford University from patents on NIPT. M. N. M. is also a shareholder of Mirvie and receives royalties from the Stanford University from patents on NIPT. M. N. M. and S. R. Q. are inventors on a patent application submitted by the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub and Stanford University that covers noninvasive early prediction of preeclampsia and monitoring maternal organ health over pregnancy (US Patent and Trademark Office application numbers 63/159,400, filed on March 10, 2021, and 63/276,467, filed on November 5, 2021). The other author declares no conflict of interest.

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This article is a review article and does not contain any novel, previously unreported data from human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Moufarrej, M.N., Winn, V.D. & Quake, S.R. Cell-Free Nucleic Acids for Early Prediction of Preeclampsia. Curr Hypertens Rep 26, 175–182 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11906-023-01291-z

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