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BACKGROUND: Increased maternal adiposity and inflammation have impacts on fetal growth. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this prospective study was to investigate the associations of 3 proinflammatory adipokines in pregnancy with neonatal anthropometry. METHODS: In a sample of 321 US pregnant women from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Fetal Growth Studies-Singleton Cohort (NCT00912132), plasma IL-6, fatty acid binding protein-4 (FABP4), and chemerin were measured in plasma samples collected at 10–14, 15–26, 23–31, and 33–39 weeks of gestation. Generalized linear models were used to estimate associations of adipokines with neonatal weight, thigh, and crown-heel length, and skinfolds at birth. Models adjusted for age, race/ethnicity, education, nulliparity, prepregnancy BMI, and weeks of gestation at blood collection. RESULTS: At each time point, higher IL-6 was associated with lower neonatal birthweight and thigh length. At 15–26 weeks of gestation, a 1 SD pg/mL increase in IL-6 was associated with –84.46 g lower neonatal birthweight (95% CI: –150.70, –18.22), –0.17 cm shorter thigh length (95% CI: –0.27, –0.07), –0.43 cm shorter crown-heel length (95% CI: –0.75, –0.10), and –0.75 mm smaller sum of skinfolds (95% CI: –1.19, –0.31), with similar associations at 23–31 and 33–39 weeks of gestation. There were no associations of FABP4 and chemerin with neonatal anthropometry. CONCLUSIONS: Starting as early as 15 weeks of gestation, higher maternal IL-6 concentrations in pregnancy were associated with lower neonatal birthweight, thigh and crown-heel length, and skinfolds. These data provide insight into the relevance of maternal inflammatory markers with neonatal anthropometry.

OBJECTIVES: Plasma profile of acylcarnitines has been suggested to associate with adverse maternal outcomes such as gestational diabetes. However, data on their associations with neonatal outcomes are sparse. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the prospective profile of acylcarnitines across gestation and its association with neonatal anthropometry, including birthweight (BW), BW z-score, the sum of skinfolds (SSF), length, and circumferences. METHODS: Among 321 pregnant women from the NICHD Fetal Growth Studies-Singletons cohort, we quantified 28 acylcarnitines using electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry in the plasma at gestational weeks 10–14, 15–26, 23–31 and 33–39, accordingly. We firstly applied a latent-class trajectory approach to identify trajectories of acylcarnitines across gestation, and secondly examined associations of individual acylcarnitine and distinct trajectory groups with neonatal anthropometry using weighted linear models with robust standard errors, adjusting for maternal age, race/ethnicity, education, parity, gestational week of blood collection, and pre-pregnancy body mass index. RESULTS: We identified three distinct trajectory groups of C2, C3 and C4, and two trajectory groups of C5, C10, C5-DC, C8:1, C10:1 and C12, respectively. Newborns of women with nonlinear decline of C12 levels across gestation (5.7%) had significantly smaller BW (−475 g; 95% CI: −942, −6.79 g), BW z-score (−0.39; −0.71, −0.06), and length (−1.38 cm; −2.49, −0.27 cm) than those with persistently stable C12 levels (94.3%). Newborns of women with consistently higher levels of C10 (6.1%) had greater sum of skinfolds (4.91 mm; 0.85, 8.98 mm) than those with lower levels (93.9%) across pregnancy, whereas newborns of women with declining C10:1 levels (12.6%) had larger sum of skinfolds (3.23 mm; 0.19, 6.27 mm) than those with abruptly increasing levels (87.4%). CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, gestational trajectories of C10, C10:1, and C12 acylcarnitine levels were significantly associated with neonatal anthropometry. Further studies are needed to verify and further explore the potential clinical utility of these findings. FUNDING SOURCES: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development intramural funding; American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding.

OBJECTIVES: Maternal physical activity (PA) may influence pregnant women and offspring health via its impact on fatty acids metabolism. This study aimed to examine associations of PA with plasma phospholipid monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) during pregnancy. METHODS: The study included 321 pregnant women from the NICHD Fetal Growth Studies (N = 2802) with plasma phospholipid MUFAs and PA measured four times at 10–14, 15–26, 23–31, and 33–39 gestational weeks (GWs). Leisure time moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) was analyzed as both continuous (hour/week) and binary variables (i.e., high MVPA: ≥150 min/week vs. low MVPA

OBJECTIVES: Using an untargeted approach to identify plasma metabolomics signature of the Mediterranean diet, a healthful dietary pattern related to both maternal and fetal outcomes, in pregnancy. METHODS: This study included 193 pregnant women from the NICHD Fetal Growth Studies-Singletons (FGS) cohort who had habitual dietary intake in the past three months measured at 8–13 gestational weeks (GW) by the semi-quantified food frequency questionnaire. Fasting plasma metabolomics profiles at 15–26 GW were measured by the high-throughput liquid chromatography quadrupole time of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-QTOF MS/MS). Metabolites were re-scaled to a median of 1 for each batch and log transformed. Alternate Mediterranean Diet (aMED) score was calculated by eight food and nutrient components (i.e., fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, fish, legumes, red and processed meats, and monounsaturated-to-saturated fat ratio), with a higher score indicating a better adherence. Prospective associations of aMED score in peri-conception and early pregnancy with individual metabolites at 15–26 GW were estimated using the linear regression adjusting for potential confounders and multiple testing. LASSO (Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator) regression with 10-fold cross-validation was performed to select metabolites that were jointly associated with high aMED score (defined as the top tertile). All statistical analyses were weighted to represent the entire FGS cohort. RESULTS: A total of 460 known metabolites were profiled and annotated. Six metabolites were selected as the biomarkers of high aMED score by the LASSO regression (i.e., with no-zero coefficients). Among them, glutamic acid and 3-hydroxybutyric acid were negatively whereas PC (40:7), CE (20:5), TG (49:1), and TG (58:4) were positively associated with aMED score. The six biomarkers were also confirmed by the linear regression with false discovery rates

OBJECTIVES: Saturated fatty acids (SFAs), of both exogenous and endogenous origins, have been implicated in fetal development and pregnancy complications. Thus, it is essential to identify modifiable factors related to SFAs besides dietary intakes. Physical activity (PA) plays an important role in metabolism of SFAs, but the associations of PA with individual SFAs during pregnancy are unknown. The objective of this study is to examine the associations of PA with total and individual SFAs during pregnancy. METHODS: Study participants are 321 women from a nested case-control study for gestational diabetes mellitus within the prospective NICHD Fetal Growth Studies-Singletons (FGS). Individual plasma phospholipid SFAs were measured at the baseline (10–14 gestational weeks [GW]), and the follow-up visits (15–26, 23–31, and 33–39 GW). PA was assessed via the Pregnancy PA Questionnaire at each visit. The associations of total PA (metabolic equivalent hours per week) quartile with maternal phospholipid SFAs were estimated by linear regression models at baseline, and generalized estimation equations (GEEs) which account for repeated measurements at follow-up visits. Resampling weights were applied to represent the entire FGS. Models were adjusted for age, race, parity, education, marital status, smoking, alcohol use, mother born in US, pre-pregnancy Body Mass Index, and Healthy Eating Index. RESULTS: Cross the follow-up visits, compared to the lowest quartile of PA, women in the highest quartile had higher total SFAs (Q4 vs. Q1: β = 0.82; 95% CI: 0.12 to 1.52; P-trend: 0.02). When separated by even or odd-chain SFAs, the positive association was only observed between PA and even-chain SFAs (Q4 vs. Q1: β = 0.81; 95% CI: 0.12 to 1.50; P-trend: 0.03). No association was observed for individual SFAs cross the follow-up visits. Also, PA was not associated with SFAs at baseline. CONCLUSIONS: Our finding suggested that PA is positively associated with the maternal even-chain SFAs of both endogenous and exogenous origins, but not with odd-chain SFAs in the second and third trimesters. This finding is novel and warrants the confirmation by future studies. FUNDING SOURCES: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)/National Institutes of Health (NIH).