Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 10, 2026
Detecting Establishment of Shared Blood Supply in Parabiotic Mice by Caudal Vein Glucose Injection
Published on: February 6, 2020
[Cord blood leptin concentration and somatic parameters of smoking mother's newborns]
Jerzy Wojculewicz1, Maria Gordon-Sulik, Joanna Wierzchowska
1Klinika Neonatologii Instytutu Połoznictwa i Chorob Kobiecych Akademii Medycznej w Gdańsku. jcwoj@amg.gda.pl
Insights
Smoking during pregnancy significantly reduces leptin levels in newborns. This is linked to lower birth weight and length in infants born to mothers who smoke.
Area of Science:
- Endocrinology
- Perinatal Medicine
- Public Health
Context:
- Leptin, a hormone produced by fat cells, regulates appetite and body mass.
- Maternal smoking during pregnancy is known to affect fetal development.
- Leptin levels at birth correlate with birth weight.
Purpose:
- To investigate the impact of maternal smoking on umbilical cord blood leptin levels.
- To analyze other somatic parameters in newborns of smoking versus non-smoking mothers.
- To assess the prevalence of smoking during pregnancy in a specific region.
Summary:
- A study of 210 women and their newborns found significantly lower leptin concentrations in umbilical cord blood from infants of smoking mothers.
- Newborns of mothers who smoked also exhibited significantly lower birth weight and length.
- The study utilized radioimmunoassay (RIA) for leptin analysis and questionnaires for smoking habits.
Impact:
- Highlights the detrimental effects of maternal smoking on fetal hormone levels and growth.
- Provides data on regional smoking prevalence during pregnancy.
- Informs public health initiatives aimed at reducing smoking during pregnancy and improving infant health outcomes.
Abstract:
Leptin is a peptide synthesised in white fat tissue adipocytes. It plays a key role in appetite regulation and body mass development. The leptin's concentration is correlated with body fat magazines. This hormone has also anorectic and sympatheticomimetic function. Leptin's concentration measured early after birth is strictly connected with birth-weight. Smoking during pregnancy leads to decrease of plasma leptin concentration in newborn. The aim of the study was estimation of the leptin level in umbilical cord blood of children born from smoking and no-smoking women. Some other somatic parameters were also analysed. A cohort of 210 women and their children born in the Institute of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Medical University of Gdansk was examined. The estimation of frequency of smoking during pregnancy was analysed by questionnaire done in this group. Samples of the umbilical cord blood were collected after birth and leptin concentration was analysed by standard RIA method. Significantly lower leptin concentration in smoking mothers' newborns was stated. Children born from smoking mothers had significantly lower birth weight and length. The frequency of smoking during pregnancy in analysed region is lower in compare to previous years.