Oxidative stress in pregnant women (original) (raw)

Oxidative stress can be defined as a state of disrupted balance between reactive oxygen species and the mechanisms of detoxification and repair. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are formed in every living cell during the physiological process of breathing, and a molecule of ROS contains an atom of oxygen with an unpaired electron. During a normal pregnancy, oxidative stress enhances antioxidant mechanisms that are capable of reacting by way of enzyme activity and non-enzyme free radical deactivators. However, pregnancy is also a state in which this adaptation and balance may be easily disrupted. There is strong evidence that a chronicin flammatory reaction combined with the presence of a local oxidizing environment may play a vital role in the etiology and development of complications during pregnancy. In late pregnancy, damage to DNA (especially when it is caused by oxidative stress) is associated with pre-eclampsia(PE), intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), and the death of mothers...