Concentrations of tocopherols and carotenoids in maternal and cord blood plasma

Abstract

Objectives: To determine the levels of tocopherols, retinol and carotenoids in maternal and umbilical cord blood plasma and to investigate the relationships between them. Design: Venous blood plasma concentrations of a, g and d-tocopherol, retinol, lutein, lycopene, zeaxanthin, bcryptoxanthin, a and b-carotene were determined by HPLC in healthy pregnant women and in pair-matched umbilical cords. Plasma levels of triglycerides and cholesterol were also measured. Subjects: Sixty-six women, between 10 and 20 weeks gestation, were recruited randomly during their ®rst antenatal appointment. From this group, 40 pair-matched umbilical cord blood samples were obtained. Results: Tocopherols, retinol, carotenoids and lipids were present in signi®cantly higher (P`0.001) concentrations in maternal plasma than in cord plasma. There was a signi®cant correlation (r 0.45, P`0.005) between maternal and cord levels of g-tocopherol, but not of a-tocopherol, retinol or carotenoids. Tocopherols and carotenoids were signi®cantly correlated with each other (P`0.05) in maternal and cord plasma. Cconclusions: Plasma levels of tocopherols, carotenoids and lipids are substantially lower at birth than in adulthood. There is a clear relationship between g-tocopherol levels in maternal and cord plasma. The importance of g-tocopherol in human nutrition should be further investigated. There are no signi®cant relationships between plasma a-tocopherol and carotenoids in pregnant mothers and cords. More research is needed to elucidate the maternal-foetal transfer of tocopherols and carotenoids, and to examine the impact of maternal antioxidant nutrient status on neonatal antioxidant capacity. It is important to determine if a low level of tocopherols and carotenoids at birth is a normal stage of human development or indicative of de®ciency.

Relationship between plasma fatty acid profile and antioxidant vitamins during normal pregnancy

“…In this study plasma levels of retinol, a-tocopherol, gtocopherol, lycopene and b-carotene were lower in cord blood than in the mothers, which agrees with previous findings (Yeum et al, 1998;Kiely et al, 1999). The role of retinol and its metabolites in reproduction and embryonic development have been clearly established (for a recent review, see Clagett-Dame & DeLuca, 2002).…”

“…As shown in other studies (Kiely et al, 1999), and distinct from what occurs with a-tocopherol, lipid-adjusted values of g-tocopherol were lower in cord blood plasma than in the mothers. Despite its abundance in the diet, tissue content and plasma levels of g-tocopherol are normally much lower than a-tocopherol (Mino et al, 1985).…”

“…The latter probably occurs due to the enhanced level of vitamin E, although other antioxidant vitamins, like bcarotene and vitamin A, remain, respectively, stable or decreased during normal pregnancy (De Vriese et al, 2001). Plasma levels of a-and g-tocopherols have consistently been shown to be reduced in the cord blood of normal newborns and in preterm infants compared to either maternal or normal adult levels (Muller, 1994;Yeum et al, 1998;Kiely et al, 1999). The transfer of vitamin E in perfused normal term human placenta was found at a rate of only 10% of Lglucose (Schenker et al, 1998), and a lack of a significant improvement of the vitamin E status in neonates after a short-term supplementation of pregnant women before delivery has also been reported (Leger et al, 1998).…”

“…Furthermore, since in most previous studies, one time point was used to collect maternal blood, being either before delivery (Kiely et al, 1999;Min et al, 2001) or during labor (Al et al, 1990;Yeum et al, 1998;Berghaus et al, 2000), it is not known whether delivery itself modifies any of the studied variables. Thus, the objective of this study was to measure these variables in the first and third trimesters of pregnancy and at delivery, as well as in cord blood samples.…”

Relación Entre Los Niveles De Ácido Todo Trans-Retinoico en Sangre De Cordón Umbilical Y Medidas Antropométricas Del Recién Nacido

“…Existe controversia respecto del estatus materno de vitamina A y los niveles de la misma encontrados en la sangre de cordón umbilical (24,25). Algunos autores señalan que existe correlación entre los niveles de vitamina A en la madre y en la sangre de cordón umbilical (26,27,28).…”