ABSTRACT

Objective: To establish the oxidant/antioxidant status in serum samples from pregnant women above the threshold for Down syndrome (DS) risk, according to the quadruple test.

Methods: Thirty maternal serum samples that were above the threshold for DS risk (study group) were chosen from pregnant women whose quadruple tests were studied at Ankara University İbni Sina Hospital Central Laboratory. They were matched with the control group consisting of 30 pregnant women whose DS risk were below threshold. Malondialdehyde level, glutathione peroxidase and non-enzymatic superoxide radical scavenger activities (NSSAs) were analyzed in the study and control groups.

Results: It was found that NSSA was significantly decreased in the study group as compared to the control group (p = 0.006). Malondialdehyde levels had a tendency to increase with gestational week in both groups (p = 0.042 in the study group and p < 0.001 in the control group).

Conclusion: There is a significant decrease in non-enzymatic antioxidant capacity in pregnant women that were above the threshold for DS risk, as compared to the control group. In the context of these results, dietary antioxidant supplementation might be a useful approach during early gestation, especially around the time of conception, possibly to prevent bearing a DS fetus.