Translational Research on Pre-eclampsia with Existing Drugs Targeting Antioxidant Molecules

Pre-eclampsia, a type of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP), is characterized by hypertension and organ dysfunction that develops or worsens after 20 weeks of gestation. Although symptomatic management using antihypertensive medications has been adopted, definitive treatments other than pregnancy termination remain unavailable to halt disease progression. Research on heme oxygenase (HO)-1, a molecule with anti-inflammatory and antioxidative properties, has shown that a pharmacological increase in placental HO-1 expression and activity may ameliorate this condition; therefore, HO-1 is a promising therapeutic target for this disorder. Medications with properties that can be used during pregnancy are strong candidates for repurposing. In this article, I discuss the potential applications of proton pump inhibitors in the prevention or treatment of preeclampsia by presenting our foundational research and subsequent observational and interventional clinical studies.