Catestatin—A Potential New Therapeutic Target for Women with Preeclampsia? An Analysis of Maternal Serum Catestatin Levels in Preeclamptic Pregnancies

Background: Catestatin has been identified as an important factor in blood pressure control in non-pregnant adults. A possible impact on the development of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy has been indicated. Data on catestatin levels in pregnancy are scarce. The aim of this study was to investigate a potential association of maternal serum catestatin levels to the pathogenesis of preeclampsia. Methods: We evaluated serum catestatin levels of 50 preeclamptic singleton pregnancies and 50 healthy gestational-age-matched pregnancies included in the obstetric biobank registry of the Medical University of Vienna. Receiver operating characteristic curves and logistic regression models were performed to investigate an association between catestatin levels and development of preeclampsia. Results: Catestatin levels were significantly decreased in women with preeclampsia compared to healthy controls (median CST: 3.03 ng/mL, IQR [1.24–7.21 ng/mL] vs. 4.82 ng/mL, IQR [1.82–10.02 ng/mL]; p = 0.010), indicating an association between decreased catestatin values and the development of preeclampsia. There was no significant difference in catestatin values between early-onset preeclampsia and late-onset preeclampsia. Modelling the occurrence of preeclampsia via logistic regression was improved when adding catestatin as a predictive factor. Conclusions: Decreased serum catestatin levels are associated with the presence of preeclampsia. Further investigations into the diagnostic value and possible therapeutic role of catestatin in preeclampsia are warranted.