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Programming of infant neurodevelopment by maternal obesity: potential role of maternal inflammation and insulin

Mira Dewi1,2, Susan E Carlson2, Kathleen M Gustafson3

  • 1Department of Dietetics and Nutrition, School of Health Professions, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA.

Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition
|June 20, 2017
PubMed

Insights

Maternal insulin resistance and inflammation were not linked to fetal heart rate variability, a measure of neurodevelopment. Further research with larger sample sizes is required to confirm these findings on fetal development.

Area of Science:

  • Perinatal Medicine
  • Neurodevelopmental Biology
  • Maternal-Fetal Health

Background:

  • Maternal obesity is linked to adverse offspring neurodevelopmental outcomes.
  • Intrauterine exposure to inflammation and insulin resistance (IR) may mediate this association.
  • Fetal heart rate variability (HRV) serves as an indicator of fetal cardiac autonomic nervous system development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between maternal IR and inflammation with fetal neurodevelopment, assessed via fetal HRV.
  • To determine if maternal metabolic and inflammatory markers correlate with fetal autonomic nervous system development.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of 44 healthy maternal-fetal pairs with varying maternal pre-pregnancy BMI.
  • Assessment of maternal inflammation (IL-6, TNF-α) and IR (HOMA index).
  • Measurement of fetal HRV (SD1, SD2) using fetal magnetocardiogram at 36 weeks gestation.

Main Results:

  • No significant correlations were found between maternal IR or inflammation markers (IL-6, TNF-α) and fetal HRV components (SD1, SD2).
  • A trend towards a negative association between maternal TNF-α and fetal SD2 approached significance (p=0.07).

Conclusions:

  • Maternal IR and inflammation were not associated with fetal cardiac autonomic nervous system development in this cohort.
  • Larger studies incorporating additional inflammatory markers are needed to fully elucidate these relationships.
Abstract

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