1. Maternal Metabolomic Profile and Fetal Programming of Offspring Adiposity: Identification of Potentially Protective Lipid Metabolites.
- Author
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Hellmuth, Christian, Lindsay, Karen L, Uhl, Olaf, Buss, Claudia, Wadhwa, Pathik D, Koletzko, Berthold, and Entringer, Sonja
- Subjects
Adipose Tissue ,Blood ,Humans ,Fatty Acids ,Unsaturated ,Phospholipids ,Absorptiometry ,Photon ,Longitudinal Studies ,Prospective Studies ,Mothers ,Body Composition ,Fetal Development ,Pregnancy ,Pregnancy Trimester ,Third ,Adult ,Infant ,Newborn ,Female ,Adiposity ,Lipid Metabolism ,Metabolomics ,adiposity ,fetal programming ,metabolomics ,obesity ,pregnancy ,Pediatric ,Perinatal Period - Conditions Originating in Perinatal Period ,Prevention ,Nutrition ,Obesity ,Metabolic and endocrine ,Reproductive health and childbirth ,Good Health and Well Being ,Food Sciences ,Nutrition and Dietetics ,Public Health and Health Services ,Food Science ,Nutrition & Dietetics - Abstract
ScopeThe fetal programming paradigm posits that the origins of obesity can be traced, in part, to the intrauterine period of life. However, the mechanisms underlying fetal programming are not well understood, and few studies have measured offspring adiposity in the neonatal period. The aim of this study is to identify maternal metabolites, and their determinants, that are associated with neonatal adiposity.Methods and resultsA targeted metabolomics approach is applied to analyze plasma samples collected across gestation from a well-characterized cohort of 253 pregnant women participating in a prospective study at the University of California, Irvine. Whole-body dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) imaging of body composition is obtained in N = 121 newborns. Statistical models are adjusted for potential confounders and multiple testing. The authors identify six alkyl-linked phosphatidylcholines (PCae), containing fatty acid 20:4, that are significantly and negatively associated with neonatal body fat percentage. Factors indicating higher socioeconomic status, non-Hispanic ethnicity, and higher nonesterified fatty acid percentages are positively associated with these PCae.ConclusionsThe polyunsaturated fatty acid 20:4 contained in PCae may exert a beneficial effect with respect to future propensity for obesity development. Prepregnancy and early pregnancy factors are determinants of these PCae, highlighting the importance of addressing preconceptional conditions for fetal programming of newborn adiposity.
- Published
- 2019