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Racial variation in umbilical cord blood leptin concentration in male babies

Gabriel Y Lai1, Sabine Rohrmann, Tanya Agurs-Collins

  • 1Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.

Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention : a Publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, Cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology
|February 11, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Racial differences in utero may affect prostate cancer risk. This study found adjusted cord blood leptin levels were not significantly higher in African-American male infants, not supporting the hypothesis.

Area of Science:

  • Perinatal biology and health disparities.
  • Endocrinology and cancer risk factors.

Background:

  • Racial disparities in prostate cancer risk are observed.
  • Leptin, influencing fetal development, is investigated as a potential factor in these disparities.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if racial differences in cord blood leptin concentrations contribute to racial disparities in prostate cancer risk.
  • To examine the relationship between leptin, birth weight, and other growth factors in newborns of different races.

Main Methods:

  • Leptin concentration measured by ELISA in cord blood from African-American and white male newborns.
  • Adjustments made for birth weight, placental weight, maternal factors, and hormone levels using linear regression.

Main Results:

  • Leptin positively correlated with birth weight, placental weight, IGF-1, and IGFBP-3.
  • Unadjusted cord blood leptin levels were similar between African-American and white infants.
  • Adjusted leptin levels were nonsignificantly higher in African-American infants.

Conclusions:

  • Adjusted cord blood leptin concentrations were not significantly different between African-American and white male newborns.
  • Findings do not support the hypothesis that in utero leptin levels explain racial disparities in adult prostate cancer risk.
Abstract

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