A Prospective Study of Early Pregnancy Essential Metal(loid)s and Glucose Levels Late in the Second Trimester

Abstract

Context Studies suggest many essential trace metal(loid)s are involved in glucose metabolism, but the associations among pregnant women are unclear. Objective To assess associations between early pregnancy plasma zinc, selenium, copper, and molybdenum levels and blood glucose levels later in the second trimester. Design The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Fetal Growth Studies‒Singleton Cohort is a prospective cohort study conducted between July 2009 and January 2013. Setting Twelve academic research hospitals in the United States. Patients A total of 1857 multiracial, nonobese, healthy women. Main Outcome Measure Blood glucose levels from 1-hour 50-g gestational load test (GLT) at 24 to 28 weeks of gestation. Results Higher concentrations of first-trimester copper were associated with higher glucose levels from the GLT (i.e., every 50% increase in copper concentration was related to 4.9 mg/dL higher glucose level; 95% CI: 2.2, 7.5 mg/dL) adjusted for maternal sociodemographic characteristics and reproductive history. In contrast, every 50% increase in molybdenum concentration was associated with 1.2 mg/dL lower mean glucose level (95% CI: −2.3, −0.1 mg/dL). The magnitude of these associations was greater at the upper tails of glucose level distribution based on quantile regressions of the 10th, 50th, and 90th percentiles. Conclusions Higher copper and lower molybdenum concentrations could increase the risk of glucose dysregulation during pregnancy, with women at higher risk of gestational diabetes mellitus potentially affected to a greater extent. Further work is needed to understand the mechanisms involved with early pregnancy essential metal(loid)s to inform clinical diagnosis and prevention of glucose intolerance during pregnancy.

Inverse Association of Plasma Molybdenum with Metabolic Syndrome in a Chinese Adult Population: A Case-Control Study

“…Third, molybdate, as a phosphotyrosine phosphatase (PTPase) inhibitor, can mimic certain insulin actions to normalize blood glucose levels by increasing phosphorylation and autophosphorylation of both insulin receptor tyrosine kinase (insRTK) and cytosolic protein tyrosine kinase (cytPTK) substrate, which is beneficial to upregulate insulin signal transduction [47][48][49]. Glucose-lowering effects of molybdate were also observed in pancreatic beta cells through increasing cellular insulin content and enhancing both basal and glucose-induced insulin secretion [50,51].…”

Fasting Plasma Glucose Mediates the Prospective Effect of Maternal Metal Level on Birth Outcomes: A Retrospective and Longitudinal Population-Based Cohort Study

“…Metal level was log-transformed based on a 1.5 logarithm function, assuring that 1-unit change on the transformed scale was close to or within the IQR. One-unit difference on the natural log-transformed scale corresponded to a much wider range than the IQR on the original range ( 24 ). The models were adjusted for the following factors: maternal age, employment status, parity, maternity insurance, family history of diabetes, family history of hypertension, HDP, GDM, BMI, gestational age for metal detection, weight gain during pregnancy, infant sex, and gestational age at delivery.…”

“…Mn has been shown to inhibit glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in β cells ( 21 ), while higher urinary Zn or Pb could increase FPG of Chinese adults ( 22 ). In addition, serum Mg levels have been negatively associated with fasting insulin, and higher copper concentrations could increase the risk of glucose dysregulation during pregnancy ( 23 , 24 ). Our previous study ( 25 ) also found that metals including Mn, Cu, Pb, Zn, and Mg in early pregnancy were prospectively related to later FPG in pregnant women.…”

Dietary Micronutrients from Zygote to Senility: Updated Review of Minerals’ Role and Orchestration in Human Nutrition throughout Life Cycle with Sex Differences

“…A prospective cohort study in Mexico found no relation between the amounts of molybdenum in the urine of pregnant women who indicated molybdenum exposure and mental retardation in the infants [151]. On the other hand, another prospective cohort study concluded that low serum levels of molybdenum in pregnant women could be associated with elevated blood glucose levels and may increase the risk of gestational diabetes [152]. However, the previous studies did not involve supplementing the pregnant women with an accurate dose of the element.…”