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Evidence on long term influences of maternal vitamin B12 deficiency or concentrations on infant cognition is limited. We examined associations between maternal plasma vitamin B12 and cognitive development in 24-months old infants. Maternal plasma vitamin B12 concentrations were measured at 26-28 weeks’ gestation; infant cognitive development assessed with the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-III at 24 months, for 443 mother-infant pairs from the Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes cohort. Linear regressions adjusted for key confounders examined associations of maternal vitamin B12 with cognitive, receptive and expressive language, fine and gross motor subscales. Co-occurrence of maternal vitamin B12 with folate or vitamin B6 insufficiencies on child’s cognition was explored. Average maternal plasma vitamin B12 concentrations was 220.5 ± 80.5 pmol/L; 15% and 41% of mothers were vitamin B12 deficient (

Background: Choline status has been positively associated with weight and fat mass in animal and human studies. As evidence examining maternal circulating choline concentrations and offspring body composition in human infants/children is lacking, we investigated this in two cohorts.Methods: Maternal choline concentrations were measured in the UK Southampton Women’s Survey (SWS; serum, n=985, 11 weeks’ gestation) and Singapore Growing Up Towards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO); n=955, 26-28 weeks’ gestation) mother-offspring cohorts. Offspring anthropometry was measured at birth and age up to 5 years. Body fat mass was determined using DXA at birth and age 4 years for SWS, and using air displacement plethysmography at birth and age 5 years for GUSTO. Linear regression analyses were performed adjusting for confounders.Results: In SWS, higher maternal choline concentrations were associated with higher neonatal total body fat mass [β=0.60 SD/5 µmol/L maternal choline (95% CI 0.04-1.16)] and higher subscapular skinfold thickness [β=0.55 mm/5 µmol/L (0.12-1.00)] at birth. In GUSTO, higher maternal choline concentrations were associated with higher neonatal BMI-for-age z-score [β=0.31 SD/5 µmol/L (0.10-0.51)], and higher triceps [β=0.38 mm/5 µmol/L (0.11-0.65)] and subscapular skinfold thicknesses [β=0.26 mm/5 µmol/L (0.01-0.50)] at birth. No consistent trends were observed between maternal choline and offspring gain in BMI, skinfold thicknesses, abdominal circumference, weight, length/height, and adiposity measures in later infancy and early childhood.Conclusion: Our study provides evidence that maternal circulating choline concentrations during pregnancy are positively associated with offspring BMI, skinfold thicknesses and adiposity at birth, but not with growth and adiposity through infancy and early childhood to ages 5 years.

BackgroundIn randomized trials, supplementation of n–3 (ω-3) long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs) during pregnancy has resulted in increased size at birth, which is attributable to longer gestation.ObjectiveWe examined this finding by using a Mendelian randomization approach utilizing fatty acid desaturase (FADS) gene variants affecting LC-PUFA metabolism.DesignAs part of a tri-ethnic mother-offspring cohort in Singapore, 35 genetic variants in FADS1, FADS2, and FADS3 were genotyped in 898 mothers and 1103 offspring. Maternal plasma n–3 and n–6 PUFA concentrations at 26–28 wk of gestation were measured. Gestation duration was derived from an ultrasound dating scan in early pregnancy and from birth date. Birth length and weight were measured. Eight FADS variants were selected through a tagging-SNP approach and examined in association with PUFA concentrations, gestation duration among spontaneous labors, and birth size with the use of ethnicity-adjusted linear regressions and survival models that accounted for the competing risks of induced labor and prelabor cesarean delivery.ResultsMaternal FADS1 variant rs174546, tagging for 8 other variants located on FADS1 and FADS2, was strongly related to plasma n–6 but not n–3 LC-PUFA concentrations. Offspring and maternal FADS3 variants were associated with gestation duration among women who had spontaneous labor: each copy of rs174450 minor allele C was associated with a shorter gestation by 2.2 d (95% CI: 0.9, 3.4 d) and 1.9 d (0.7, 3.0 d) for maternal and offspring variants, respectively. In survival models, rs174450 minor allele homozygotes had reduced time to delivery after spontaneous labor compared with major allele homozygotes [HR (95% CI): 1.51 (1.18, 1.95) and 1.51 (1.20, 1.89) for mothers and offspring, respectively].ConclusionsWith the use of a Mendelian randomization approach, we observed associations between FADS variants and gestation duration. This suggests a potential role of LC-PUFAs in gestation duration. This trial was registered at http://www.clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01174875.