Maternal plasma metabolic markers of neonatal adiposity and associated maternal characteristics: The GUSTO study

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

  • Ai-Ru Chia
  • Jamie de Seymour
  • Gerard Wong
  • Karolina Sulek
  • Ting-Li Han
  • Elizabeth J. McKenzie
  • Izzuddin M. Aris
  • Keith M. Godfrey
  • Fabian Yap
  • Kok Hian Tan
  • Lynette Pei-Chi Shek
  • Yung Seng Lee
  • Michael S. Kramer
  • Neerja Karnani
  • Mary Foong-Fong Chong
  • Philip N. Baker

Infant adiposity may be related to later metabolic health. Maternal metabolite profiling reflects both genetic and environmental influences and allows elucidation of metabolic pathways associated with infant adiposity. In this multi-ethnic Asian cohort, we aimed to (i) identify maternal plasma metabolites associated with infant adiposity and other birth outcomes and (ii) investigate the maternal characteristics associated with those metabolites. In 940 mother-offspring pairs, we performed gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and identified 134 metabolites in maternal fasting plasma at 26-28 weeks of gestation. At birth, neonatal triceps and subscapular skinfold thicknesses were measured by trained research personnel, while weight and length measures were abstracted from delivery records. Gestational age was estimated from first-trimester dating ultrasound. Associations were assessed by multivariable linear regression, with p-values corrected using the Benjamini-Hochberg approach. At a false discovery rate of 5%, we observed associations between 28 metabolites and neonatal sum of skinfold thicknesses (13 amino acid-related, 4 non-esterified fatty acids, 6 xenobiotics, and 5 unknown compounds). Few associations were observed with gestational duration, birth weight, or birth length. Maternal ethnicity, pre-pregnancy BMI, and diet quality during pregnancy had the strongest associations with the specific metabolome related to infant adiposity. Further studies are warranted to replicate our findings and to understand the underlying mechanisms.

Original languageEnglish
Article number9422
JournalScientific Reports
Volume10
Issue number1
Number of pages11
ISSN2045-2322
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2020

    Research areas

  • CHAIN FATTY-ACIDS, MULTIETHNIC ASIAN COHORT, TRIMESTER AMNIOTIC-FLUID, INSULIN-RESISTANCE, BIRTH-WEIGHT, GROWING-UP, PRENATAL DISORDERS, PRETERM BIRTH, AMINO-ACIDS, PREGNANCY

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