Endothelial Extracellular Vesicles as Biomarkers of Endothelial Activation in Pregnant Women With Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy (HYPER-endoEV-p)

July 22, 2026 updated by: Ines Drenjancevic, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek

Endothelial Extracellular Vesicles as Biomarkers of Blood Pressure-Induced Endothelial Activation in Pregnant Women With Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy are associated with endothelial dysfunction and increased maternal and fetal morbidity. Endothelial extracellular vesicles (EEVs) have emerged as promising biomarkers of endothelial activation; however, their relationship with blood pressure and endothelial function during pregnancy remains incompletely understood. This observational case-control study aims to compare circulating EEV concentrations between normotensive pregnant women and pregnant women with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. The study will also investigate the associations between EEV levels, blood pressure, microvascular endothelial function assessed by laser Doppler flowmetry, and circulating biomarkers of endothelial activation. The findings may improve understanding of endothelial injury during pregnancy and support the development of non-invasive biomarkers for early detection and monitoring of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
80

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • Croatia
      • Osijek, Croatia
        • Recruiting
        • Faculty of Medicine Osijek
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

The study population will include pregnant women aged 18 years and older recruited from the outpatient clinics of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital Centre Osijek, Croatia. Participants will comprise normotensive pregnant women and women with newly diagnosed hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, including gestational hypertension and preeclampsia, diagnosed according to current international clinical guidelines.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Pregnant women aged ≥18 years.
  • Singleton pregnancy.
  • Ability to provide written informed consent.
  • Normotensive pregnancy or diagnosis of gestational hypertension or preeclampsia according to current clinical guidelines.
  • Ability to comply with study procedures.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Chronic hypertension diagnosed before pregnancy.
  • Multiple pregnancy.
  • Pre-existing diabetes mellitus.
  • Chronic kidney disease.
  • Autoimmune disease.
  • Known cardiovascular disease.
  • Active infection or inflammatory disease.
  • Malignancy.
  • Inability or unwillingness to provide informed consent.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Normotensive Pregnancy
Pregnant women with normal blood pressure and uncomplicated singleton pregnancy.
Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy
Pregnant women diagnosed with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, including gestational hypertension or preeclampsia, according to current clinical guidelines.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Plasma endothelial extracellular vesicle concentration
Time Frame: Baseline
Concentration of circulating endothelial extracellular vesicles quantified by flow cytometry following size-exclusion chromatography isolation.
Baseline

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Post-occlusive reactive hyperemia (PORH)
Time Frame: Baseline
Microvascular endothelium-dependent vasodilation assessed by laser Doppler flowmetry following 1-minute arterial occlusion.
Baseline
Acetylcholine-induced vasodilation (AChID)
Time Frame: Baseline
Endothelium-dependent microvascular vasodilation assessed by acetylcholine iontophoresis and laser Doppler flowmetry.
Baseline
Sodium nitroprusside-induced vasodilation (SNPID)
Time Frame: Baseline
Endothelium-independent microvascular vasodilation assessed by sodium nitroprusside iontophoresis and laser Doppler flowmetry.
Baseline
VCAM-1 concentration
Time Frame: Baseline
Plasma vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) concentration measured as a marker of endothelial activation.
Baseline
ICAM-1 concentration
Time Frame: Baseline
Plasma intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) concentration measured as a marker of endothelial activation.
Baseline
Endocan concentration
Time Frame: Baseline
Plasma endocan concentration measured as a marker of endothelial dysfunction.
Baseline
von Willebrand factor (vWF)
Time Frame: Baseline
Plasma von Willebrand factor concentration measured as a marker of endothelial injury.
Baseline
Matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9)
Time Frame: Baseline
Plasma MMP-9 concentration measured as a marker of vascular remodeling and endothelial dysfunction.
Baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Osijek University Hospital

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Chair: Ana Stupin, MD, PhD, Faculty of Medicine Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer of Osijek

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
April 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
April 30, 2029

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
September 30, 2029

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
July 22, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
July 22, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
July 27, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
July 27, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
July 22, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • HYPER-endoEV-pregnancy

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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