[The imbalance of metal-containing proteins and free metal ions in the amniotic fluid during fetal growth].

The levels of zinc, copper, iron, and magnesium ions, and some of their binding proteins have been investigated in an amniotic fluid under the fetal growth retardation (FGR). FGR, developed under conditions of placental insufficiency, is characterized by a decrease in the content of zinc, iron, and magnesium ions and by an increase in the copper content in the amniotic fluid in the II and III trimesters of pregnancy. During these trimesters the levels of ceruloplasmin, ferritin, and Ca2+,Mg2+-ATPase were lower in FGR, while the level of zinc-a-2-glycoprotein was higher than during the same periods of normal pregnancy. Changes in the parameters studied in the amniotic fluid were associated with developmental disorders of the newborns. These changes obviously have a pathogenetic importance in the development of FGR, and the levels of metal ions and their ratio in the amniotic fluid can be used as markers of the pre- and postnatal pathology.