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Published on: February 16, 2012
Surfactant phospholipid composition of gastric aspirate samples differs between male and female very preterm infants
Foula Sozo1, Noreen Ishak1, Risha Bhatia2
1Development and Stem Cells Program, Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute and Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Insights
Sex differences in pulmonary surfactant composition exist in preterm infants. These variations in phosphatidylinositol, sphingomyelin, and phosphatidylcholine may explain why males face higher respiratory risks.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal physiology
- Pulmonary surfactant biochemistry
Background:
- Male preterm infants exhibit higher rates of respiratory distress and mortality compared to females.
- Sex-related differences in lung maturation are hypothesized to underlie these disparities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate potential sex-based variations in pulmonary surfactant phospholipid composition among preterm infants.
- To correlate these compositional differences with observed sex-based respiratory morbidities.
Main Methods:
- Gastric aspirate samples collected from male and female infants (25–30 weeks gestation) within 1 hour of birth.
- Phospholipid composition analyzed using electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry.
Main Results:
- Preterm males showed higher proportions of phosphatidylinositol (PI) and phosphatidylserine 36:2.
- Females had higher proportions of total sphingomyelin (S) and specific sphingomyelin variants (S 33:1, S 35:1), resulting in a lower phosphatidylcholine (PC)/S ratio in males.
- Specific phosphatidylcholine (PC) molecular species varied between sexes and by gestational age, including dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (PC 32:0).
Conclusions:
- Pulmonary surfactant phospholipid composition differs significantly between male and female preterm infants of the same gestational age.
- These sex-specific compositional differences may contribute to the increased risk of respiratory morbidities observed in one sex.
Abstract:
BackgroundAmong preterm infants, males have a greater incidence of respiratory distress and death than do females born at the same gestational age, likely due to sex-related differences in lung maturation. Our aim was to determine whether surfactant phospholipid composition differs between male and female preterm infants.MethodsGastric aspirate samples from male and female infants born between 25 and 30 weeks of gestation at The Royal Women's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia, were collected within 1 h after birth. Phospholipid composition was analyzed by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry.ResultsPreterm males had higher proportions of total phosphatidylinositol (PI) and phosphatidylserine 36:2, lower proportions of total sphingomyelin (S) and S 33:1 and 35:1, and a greater phosphatidylcholine (PC)/S ratio than did females. The proportions of PC 30:0, PC 34:0, PC 34:2, PC 36:2, PC 36:3, and PC 38:2 differed between the sexes at different gestational weeks of birth; the proportion of PC 32:0 (dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine) in males was lower than that in females at 25 weeks of gestation but higher at 27 weeks.ConclusionPhospholipid composition in pulmonary surfactant is different between male and female preterm infants of the same gestational age, which may contribute to the increased risk for respiratory morbidities in one sex.
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