Maternal serum IGF-1, IGFBP-1 and 3, and placental growth hormone at 20 weeks’ gestation in pregnancies complicated by preeclampsia

Objective To investigate whether maternal serum concentrations of placental growth hormone (GH-V), insulin-like growth factor (IGF) 1 and 2, and IGF binding proteins (IGFBP) 1 and 3 were altered in pregnancies complicated by later preeclampsia (PE). 

Study design In a nested case-control study, PE cases (n = 71) and matched controls (n = 71) were selected from the Screening for Pregnancy Endpoints (SCOPE) biobank in Auckland, New Zealand. Maternal serum hormone concentrations at 20 weeks of gestation were determined by ELISA. 

Results We found that maternal serum GH-V concentration at 20 weeks of gestation was unaltered in the PE group, compared to the control group (median, 1.78 ng/ml vs. 1.65 ng/ml, p = 0.884). Maternal IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 concentrations and the IGF-1/IGFBP-3 ratio in PE pregnancies were significantly higher than in controls (median, 253.1 ng/ml vs. 204.3 ng/ml, p < 0.0001; 8535 ng/ml vs. 7711 ng/ml, p = 0.0023; 0.032 vs. 0.026, p < 0.0001, respectively), whereas maternal IGFBP-1 concentration was significantly lower in PE pregnancies than in controls (median, 34.85 ng/ml vs. 48.92 ng/ml, p = 0.0006). 

Conclusion Our findings suggest a potential role of IGFs and IGFBPs in the prediction of pregnancies complicated by PE. However, the maternal serum concentration of GH-V at 20 weeks’ gestation is unlikely to be useful in the early prediction of PE.