ENG and preeclampsia: Interestingly, ectodomain shedding of the membrane-bound receptor may occur under certain physiological conditions, and the plasma levels of this soluble endoglin form are highly increased and play a major pathogenic role in preeclampsia, a systemic syndrome of pregnancy which is associated with significant morbidity and mortality of both mothers and fetuses and which is characterized by pregnancy-associated hypertension and proteinuria [3].