Development of Adipose Tissue in Newborns of Gestational-diabetic and Insulin-dependent Diabetic Mothers

Abstract

Some parameters of adipose tissue development have been studied in normal, full-term infants of gestational-diabetic mothers (GDM) and insulin-dependent diabetic mothers (IDDM). Values of skinfold thickness, body fat mass, and fat cell weight in full-term newborns of GDM and IDDM are greater than in infants of nondiabetic mothers. Fat mass enlargement in newborns of diabetic mothers seems to be caused almost exclusively by an increase in the triglyceride content of the single adipocytes. Results of determinations of fat cell weight are in fact significantly higher in newborns of GDM and IDDM and correlate closely with skinfold thickness and body fat mass: No differences resulted in the approximate estimate of fat cell number. Neither maternal weight gain during pregnancy nor pregravidic overweight seem to be directly related to the expansion of adipose tissue observed in newborns of diabetic mothers. Maternal blood glucose levels and neonatal IRI levels in cord blood significantly correlated with fat cell weight. Maternal FFA levels are not related to parameters of adipose tissue development in newborns of normal, GD, and IDD mothers. In conclusion, enlargement of body fat mass in full-term infants of GDM and IDDM is dependent on glucose availability and, thus, on the insulin-induced enhancement of triglyceride synthesis and storage in single adipocytes. Free fatty acids do not seem to play an important role in regulating the triglyceride content of fat cells in newborns of gestational-diabetic or insulin-dependent diabetic mothers.

Changes in serum lipid and lipoprotein concentrations and compositions at birth and after 1 month of life in macrosomic infants of insulin-dependent diabetic mothers

“…Fat and protein syntheses are increased in the fetus with overnutrition and our data are in agreement with earlier reports [3,6]. The concomitant presence of excess substrates and hyperinsulinaemia enhances fetal lipid and protein syntheses [15,30].…”

“…Several alterations in carbohydrate and lipid metabolism are observed in infants of diabetic mothers and are thought to be a consequence of maternal hyperglycaemia leading to fetal hyperglycaemia and hyperinsulinaemia [3,6,12,25,27].…”

Increased fetal adiposity prior to diagnosis of gestational diabetes in South Asians: more evidence for the ‘thin–fat’ baby

“…The higher fetal adiposity at 20 weeks persisted after adjustment for maternal age, BMI, parity, GWG, fetal sex and gestational age at scan. The current literature on fetal adiposity in GDM reports a higher AAWT only in the third trimester, that is, well after 26 weeks of gestation and after the diagnosis of GDM [10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. To our knowledge, this is the first report of adiposity in early fetal life at 20 weeks.…”

Overweight and obesity in infants of mothers with long-term insulin-dependent diabetes or gestational diabetes

“…Neonatal insulin is known to be positively correlated to histological fat cell parameters in newborns of diabetic mothers. 23 Although very speci®c methods for the determination of obesity were developed during the past years, for practical purposes Berenson et al 4 suggested that obesity in children should be estimated by measuring weight, height and skinfold thicknesses. The symmetry index (SI) established by Farquhar 11 was supposed to have advantages in estimating overweight in childhood.…”