Maternal plasma adiponectin concentrations at 24 to 31 weeks of gestation: negative association with gestational diabetes mellitus.
OBJECTIVE
Adiponectin is an adipocyte-derived hormone with antidiabetic, antiatherosclerotic, and antiinflammatory properties. This study investigated the relations between maternal adiponectin concentration and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and other metabolic parameters during midpregnancy.


METHODS
Two-hour 75-g oral glucose tolerance tests were performed in 253 pregnant women at 24 to 31 wk of gestation. Two hundred nineteen who had normal glucose tolerance (NGT) and 34 women who had GDM and their newborns were investigated. Fasting maternal blood samples were drawn to determine plasma concentrations of adiponectin, glucose, insulin, C-peptide, free fatty acid, and blood lipids. Blood samples at 1 and 2 h after an oral glucose load were obtained to measure plasma glucose, insulin, and C-peptide concentrations.


RESULTS
Plasma adiponectin concentrations were significantly lower in women who had GDM than in those who had NGT (P = 0.014). Maternal age, body mass index (before pregnancy and at blood collection), and plasma level of free fatty acid were significantly greater in those who had GDM than in those who had NGT. Logistic regression analysis showed that maternal adiponectin level and GDM were significantly correlated (P = 0.043), but that the correlation became weaker (P = 0.116) after adjusting for maternal body mass index and plasma level of free fatty acid before pregnancy. In the NGT group, maternal adiponectin concentrations were significantly negatively correlated with plasma fasting insulin, fasting C-peptide, fasting C-peptide/fasting glucose ratio, 2-h glucose, triacylglycerol, and maternal body mass index and positively correlated with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentration. In the GDM group, maternal adiponectin level was negatively correlated with neonatal birth weight.


CONCLUSIONS
Midpregnancy hypoadiponectinemia may be associated with a higher risk of GDM.
Tsai
Po-Jung
PJ
Department of Food Science, Yuanpei University of Science and Technology, Hsinchu, Republic of China.
Yu
Chun-Hsien
CH
Hsu
Shih-Penn
SP
Lee
Yu-Hsiang
YH
Huang
I-Tsan
IT
Ho
Su-Chen
SC
Chu
Chun-Hong
CH
D052242:Adiponectin / Q000097:blood*; D000328:Adult; D019540:Area Under Curve; D001724:Birth Weight; D015992:Body Mass Index; D016640:Diabetes, Gestational / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis; D005215:Fasting; D005230:Fatty Acids, Nonesterified / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D005951:Glucose Tolerance Test; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D016015:Logistic Models; D008423:Maternal Age; D011247:Pregnancy / Q000097:blood*; D011262:Pregnancy Trimester, Second / Q000097:blood; D011263:Pregnancy Trimester, Third / Q000097:blood
D052242:Adiponectin; D005230:Fatty Acids, Nonesterified