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. 2020 Jun 30;21(13):4698. doi: 10.3390/ijms21134698

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© 2020 by the authors.

Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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Reduction of Cx-based channel activity in preeclampsia. Normal pregnancy displays physiological NO bioavailability, with physiological hemichannels (HC) and gap junction channels (GJCs) activity that supports the exchange of NO, endothelium-derived hyperpolarization factor (EDHF), and other molecules between endothelial and smooth muscle cells. Consequently, blood flow to the placenta is adequate to satisfy its metabolic needs. However, NO bioavailability is reduced in preeclampsia due to increased free radicals. Hemichannels (HC) and gap junction channels (GJC) decrease their open probability and/or expression, reducing the flux of vasodilator molecules between endothelial and smooth muscle cells.