Prognostic biomarkers of preterm labour. Development of a predictive test kit for preterm labour.

• 
  Associate Professor
  Harry Georgiou

  View researcher's webpage

  +61 3 8458 4368 Mercy Hospital for Women
  +61 3 8345 3708 Royal Women’s Hospital

Project Details

The group is interested in the discovery and validation of putative biomarkers for the prediction of various pregnancy complications. Emphasis is on the early prediction of preterm labour, gestational diabetes, fetal growth restriction and preeclampsia. These pregnancy complications are likely to have their origin in early pregnancy but pathology often becomes manifest in the third trimester. Proteomic technologies are used to identify and characterise putative biomarkers that may be used to assess risk of future pregnancy complications. These biomarkers can also serve to understand the pathogenesis of disease or serve as therapeutic targets for early pregnancy intervention.

Researchers

• A/Prof Harry M Georgiou - Group leader and Principal Research Fellow
• A/Prof Megan Di Quinzio - Obstetrician, Senior obstetric consultant
• Prof Shaun Brennecke - Obstetrician, Senior obstetric consultant
• Ms Claire Grant - Medical Scientist, Royal Women’s Hospital

Collaborators

• Dr Penelope Sheehan - Obstetrician, Royal Women’s Hospital
• Dr Nir Arbel - Carmentix Pte Ltd, Singapore
• Dr Sam Min Leow - Carmentix Pte Ltd, Singapore
• Dr Ying Wei - Carmentix Pte Ltd, Singapore
• Mr Zhen Long Ng - Carmentix Pte Ltd, Singapore
• Ms Tal Amitay - Carmentix Australia
• Dr Bill Kalionis - Pregnancy Research Centre, Royal Women’s Hospital

Funding

This research is funded by Carmentix Australia Pty Ltd.

Research Publications

1. Di Quinzio MKW, Oliva K, Holdsworth SJ, Ayhan M, Walker SP, Rice GE, Georgiou HM, Permezel M. Proteomic analysis and characterisation of human cervico-vaginal proteins. Aust. NZ. J. Obstet. Gynaecol. 47:9-15, 2007
2. Di Quinzio MKW, Georgiou HM, Holdsworth-Carson SJ, Ayhan M, Heng YJJ, Walker SP, Rice GE, Permezel M. Proteomic analysis of human cervico-vaginal fluid displays differential protein expression in association with labour onset at term. J. Proteome Res. 7:1916-1921, 2008
3. Heng YJ, Di Quinzio MKW, Permezel M, Rice GE, Georgiou HM. Interleukin-1 receptor antagonist in human cervico-vaginal fluid in term pregnancy and labour. Am. J. Obstet. Gynecol. 199:656.e1-656.e7, 2008
4. Hodges R, Salvador L, D’Antona D, Georgiou HM, Wallace EM. Activin A as a marker of intrauterine infection in women with preterm prelabour rupture of membranes. J. Perinatol. 30:22-26, 2010
5. Heng YJ, Di Quinzio MKW, Permezel M, Ayhan M, Rice GE, Georgiou HM. Temporal proteomic analysis of human cervicovaginal fluid with impending labour. J. Proteome Res. 9:1344-1350, 2010
6. Heng YJ, Di Quinzio MKW, Permezel M, Rice GE, Georgiou HM. Temporal expression of antioxidants in human cervicovaginal fluid associated with spontaneous labour. Antioxid. Redox Signal. 13:951-957, 2010
7. Heng YJ, Di Quinzio MKW, Permezel M, Rice GE, Georgiou HM. Cystatin A protease inhibitor and cysteine proteases in human cervicovaginal fluid in term pregnancy and labour. Am. J. Obstet. Gynecol. 204:254.e1-e7, 2011
8. Georgiou HM, Thio YS, Russell C, Permezel M, Heng YJ, Lee S, Tong S. Association between serum immune cytokine profiles at 7-10 weeks’ gestation and low birthweight. Am. J. Obstet. Gynecol. 204:415.e1-e12, 2011
9. Georgiou HM, Lopez SI, Rice GE. Novel screening approaches for the early detection of gestational diabetes mellitus. In “Gestational Diabetes” eds Radenkovic M, InTech Publishing, 2011. ISBN 978-953-307-359-0 (open access)
10. Heng YJ, Di Quinzio MKW, Liong S, Permezel M, Rice GE, Georgiou HM. Temporal investigation of matrix metalloproteinases and their inhibitors in human cervicovaginal fluid. Reprod. Sci.
11. 19(1): 55-63, 2012
12. Liong S, Di Quinzio MKW, Heng YJ, Fleming G, Permezel M, Rice GE, Georgiou HM. Proteomic analysis of human cervicovaginal fluid collected prior to preterm premature rupture of the fetal membranes. Reproduction 145 (2):137-147, 2013
13. Liong S, Di Quinzio MKW, Fleming G, Permezel M, Rice GE, Georgiou HM. Prediction of spontaneous preterm labour in at-risk pregnant women. Reproduction 146 (4): 335-345, 2013
14. Liong S, Di Quinzio MKW, Fleming G, Permezel M, Georgiou HM. Is vitamin D binding protein a novel predictor of labour? PLOS One 8 (10): e76490, 2013 (open access)
15. Heng YJ, Liong S, Permezel M, Rice GE, Di Quinzio MKW, Georgiou HM. Predicting spontaneous term labour: The interplay of the IL-1 system. Reprod. Sci. 21 (1):122-130, 2014
16. Liong S, Di Quinzio MKW, Fleming G, Permezel M, Georgiou HM. New biomarkers for the prediction of spontaneous preterm labour in symptomatic pregnant women: a comparison with fetal fibronectin. BJOG 122:370-379, 2015
17. Peiris HN, Georgiou HM, Lappas M, Kaitu’ulino T, Salomon C, Vaswani K, Rice GE, Mitchell MD. Myostatin expression in intrauterine growth restriction and preeclampsia complicated pregnancies, and alterations to cytokine production of first trimester placental explants following myostatin treatment. Reprod Sci 22(10):1202-1211, 2015
18. Heng YJ, Liong S, Permezel M, Rice GE, Di Quinzio MKW, Georgiou HM. Biomarkers in human cervicovaginal fluid to predict labour. Biomarkers for gynaecological pathologies and their appearance in cervicovaginal fluid. Editors: Van Ostade X, Verhelst R. Publisher: Frontiers in Physiology 6:151, 2015 (open access)
19. Georgiou HM, Di Quinzio MKW, Permezel M, Brennecke SP. Predicting Preterm Labour: Current Status and Future Prospects. Disease Markers vol 2015, Article ID 435014, 9 pages, 2015. doi:10.1155/2015/435014 (open access)
20. Leow SM, Di Qinzio MKW, Ng ZL, Grant C, Amitay T, Wei Y, Hod M, Sheehan P, Brennecke SB, Arbel N, Georgiou HM. Preterm birth prediction in asymptomatic women at mid-gestation using a panel of novel protein biomarkers: The Prediction of PreTerm Labor (PPeTaL) study. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology MFM. 2(2):100084, 2020, doi: 10.1016/j.ajogmf.2019.100084