HIF-1A gene polymorphism (rs11549465) as a possible general genetic predictor of anemia in pregnant women and fetal intrauterine growth retardation in women living in the conditions of the high anthropogenic load

Introduction. Intrauterine growth retardatiom of the fetus, especially in combination with anemia in pregnant women, is becoming an increasingly urgent global problem. The impaired adaptation of the mother’s and the embryo’s bodies to physiological hypoxia during pregnancy may have common genetically determined bases that manifest themselves at both the maternal and fetoplacental levels. Adaptation to endogenous hypoxia is particularly relevant in environments with high levels of anthropogenic stress.Materials and methods. Two independent pilot studies were conducted on a cohort of pregnant women living in a large industrial region. The first group consisted of thirty seven pregnant women with anemia and 53 pregnant women without this pathology. The second group included 23 women who gave birth to newborns with intrauterine growth retardation, 33 women who gave birth to healthy newborns; 19 babies diagnosed with intrauterine growth retardation, and 40 healthy babies. All participants were tested for HIF-1A gene variants using polymerase chain reaction.Results. The CC genotype of the HIF-1A gene has been shown to increase the likelihood of developing anemia during pregnancy (χ² – 4.73; OR – 3.57). The CC genotype of the HIF-1A gene in newborns is reliably associated with intrauterine growth retardation (χ² – 4.59; OR – 7.71). Polymorphic CT variant rises the resistance to the development of these pathologies. The combination of CC/CC genotypes in the mother and the fetus leads to a synergistic effect and a high probability of intrauterine growth retardation (χ² – 5.76; OR – 6.26).Limitations. The study was of a pilot nature, so it is advisable to increase the sample.Conclusion. The obtained data allow us considering the HIF-1A (rs11549465) polymorphism as a candidate marker for stratifying the risk of developing pregnancy adaptation disorder syndrome, which includes maternal anemia and fetoplacental insufficiency.Compliance with ethical standards. The study was approved by the local Ethics Committee of the Research Institute for Complex Problems of Hygiene and Occupational Diseases” (Protocol of the Meeting No. 4, § 1 dated 11/18/2021), it was conducted in accordance with the commonly accepted scientific principles of the Declaration of Helsinki of the World Medical Association “Ethical Principles for Medical Research Involving Human Subjects” as amended 2013.Contribution: Gulyaeva O.N. – concept and design of the study, literature review, collection and processing of material, writing the text; Kazitskaya A.S. – material processing; Yadykina T.K. – material processing; Tereshkin I.E. – material processing; Zagorodnikova O.A. – collection of material; Matoshin S.V. – collection of material. All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version.Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.Funding. The study had no sponsorship.Received: February 17, 2026 / Accepted: March 24, 2026 / Published: May 18, 2026