UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center members and collaborators recently published “Leptin resistance in children with in utero exposure to maternal obesity and gestational diabetes” in the journal of Pediatric Obesity.
The collaborative study was cross-departmental at UAB, and included the Department of Nutrition Sciences, the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism, and the Department of OBGYN. Overall, the team is conducting research investigating cardiomedtabolic health of women and children and brings together Paula Chandler‐Laney, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Nutrition Sciences (population), and Alan Tita, M.D., professor in the Department of OBGYN (consultant for the clinical project).
Moreover, this works was supported by the American Heart Association funded Strategically Focused Research Network (SFRN) on Obesity award at UAB. Last year, the SFRN on Obesity also supported a research review on obesity as well as three gestational diabetes publications by UCDC members.
Researchers note that they came together to better understand the role of leptin resistance and of intrauterine exposure to maternal obesity or gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in childhood obesity.
Leptin is a hormone that regulates whole body energy balance by suppressing appetite and increasing energy expenditure in the maintenance of normal body weight. Unfortunately, obesity is both associated with inducing and being exacerbated by leptin resistance.
In this study, 175 mother-child dyads were followed to interrogate the relationship between in utero exposure to maternal obesity or GDM and a child’s leptin resistance. While authors originally hypothesized that in utero exposure to these metabolic factors would induce leptin resistance in the child, researchers ultimately found no evidence for this link. In fact, it appeared as though the child’s BMI was the most predictive of their leptin sensitivity.
Authors conclude that “leptin concentrations are associated with obesity but not risk for obesity based on in utero exposure to maternal obesity or GDM.” These results suggest that a child’s external environment, such as nutrition and exercise, play more of a role in children developing leptin resistance than maternal obesity or GDM.
The first author of the study is Department of Nutrition Sciences doctoral student Alysha Everett, M.S.. Other authors include Timothy Garvey, M.D., Jose Fernandez, Ph.D., Kirk Habegger, Ph.D., Lorie Harper, M.D., MSCI, Ashley Battarbee, M.D., Samantha Martin, Ph.D., Bethany Moore, M.S., Amelia Fouts, B.S., Jessica Bahorski, Ph.D., and Paula Chandler-Laney, Ph.D.