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Erythrocyte indicators of oxidative stress in gestational diabetes
U Kamath1, G Rao, C Raghothama
1Department of Biochemistry, Katsturba Medical College, Manipal, Karnataka, India.
Insights
Gestational diabetes causes oxidative stress, increasing lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation in mothers and newborns. This damage, measured in erythrocytes, indicates elevated oxygen radical activity in both maternal and fetal red blood cells.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Obstetrics
- Neonatology
Background:
- Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) poses risks to foetuses, including respiratory distress and macrosomia.
- Elevated maternal blood glucose levels are linked to increased oxidative stress and diminished antioxidant defenses.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation in maternal and foetal erythrocytes as indicators of oxygen radical activity in GDM.
- To assess erythrocyte damage in newborns born to mothers with GDM.
Main Methods:
- Erythrocyte lipid peroxidation (malondialdehyde levels) and protein oxidation (proteolytic activity) were measured in 20 GDM mothers and their newborns.
- Levels were compared to a control group of 15 non-diabetic mothers and their infants.
- Correlations between malondialdehyde and glycated haemoglobin were analyzed in GDM mothers.
Main Results:
- Proteolytic activity was significantly higher in erythrocytes of GDM mothers and their newborns compared to controls (p < 0.05).
- Erythrocyte malondialdehyde levels were significantly elevated in infants of GDM mothers versus controls (p < 0.05).
- Malondialdehyde levels in GDM mothers correlated significantly with glycated haemoglobin (p < 0.01).
Conclusions:
- Oxidative stress from GDM results in increased lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation in erythrocytes of both mothers and newborns.
- Erythrocyte oxidative damage markers can indicate the impact of GDM on maternal and foetal health.
- These findings highlight the systemic oxidative burden associated with gestational diabetes.
Abstract:
Foetuses born to mothers with gestational diabetes are at increased risk of developing respiratory distress, foetal macrosomia, foetal anomalies and platelet hyperaggregability. High blood glucose level induces oxidative stress and decreases antioxidant defences. The present study discusses the possibility of lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation in both maternal and foetal erythrocytes as an indicator of oxygen radical activity. The level of lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation in erythrocytes was estimated in 20 mothers with gestational diabetes and their newborns. The maternal age varied between 19 and 42 y and foetal age ranged between 34 and 39 weeks. The proteolytic activities in the erythrocyte lysates obtained from mothers with gestational diabetes and their newborns were significantly greater [(mean +/- SD) 24.41 +/- 9.05 and 16.70 +/- 3.36 microM of amino groups/g haemoglobin, n = 20, respectively] than those from control group (10.18 +/- 4.84 and 14.64 +/- 6.21 microM amino groups/g haemoglobin, n = 15, respectively; p < 0.05 in both cases). Similarly erythrocyte malondialdehyde levels were significantly elevated in babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes (10.11 +/- 2.21 nM/g haemoglobin) when compared to controls (6.8 +/- 3.75 nM/g haemoglobin) (p < 0.05). In the erythrocytes of mothers with gestational diabetes, malondialdehyde levels correlated significantly with glycated haemoglobin levels (p < 0.01). The results of this study indicate that the oxidative stress induced by gestational diabetes manifests as increased lipid peroxidation and protein oxidative damage in the erythrocytes of both mothers with gestational diabetes and their newborn infants.