New Delhi
Analysis of blood samples taken from pregnant women has revealed molecular differences between pregnancies that ended prematurely and those that ended prematurely, with some signs appearing as early as the first trimester of pregnancy.
Researchers from Emory University said the findings suggest that molecular markers in the mother’s blood may help understand whether a pregnancy is likely to end in a preterm, premature or full-term birth.
Preterm births — a baby born before 37 weeks of pregnancy — and premature births, in which a baby is born at 37 or 38 weeks, can have lasting health effects.
The brain, lungs and other organs are still growing in babies during the last weeks of pregnancy, so if the baby is born too early, the baby may have breathing problems and hearing loss, among other problems.
The analysis, published in the journal Nature Health, conducted metabolic-level association studies among more than 500 pregnant women from the Atlanta African American Maternal and Child Cohort (2014-2018), with serum collected early (8-14 weeks) and later (24-30 weeks) of pregnancy.
Metabolomic association study is a research method that investigates the relationship between the full range of small molecule metabolites and specific health outcomes.
The results showed that molecular markers differed between children who were born prematurely spontaneously and those who were born premature due to medical concerns.
In pregnancies that ended in spontaneous premature birth, the mother’s blood often showed differences in amino acids, the researchers said.
Amino acids are the building blocks of protein, which also help support the development of the baby, the placenta, and the body’s response to stress.
However, in cases where the mother gave birth early for medical reasons, her blood showed molecular markers related to how the body uses fat for energy and responds to stress on the heart and metabolism.
“Distinctive metabolic profiles distinguish between clinically indicated preterm birth and preterm birth across gestations,” the authors wrote.
“Disturbances were observed in amino acid pathways, including arginine, proline, aspartate, glutamate, methionine, and cysteine,” they said.
Amino acid pathways such as aspartate and asparagine metabolism, arginine and proline metabolism, and glutamate metabolism are intimately involved in oxidative stress and acute inflammatory response.
Amino acids in glutamate metabolism, aspartate and asparagine metabolism, and arginine and proline metabolism are important precursors for fetal growth and development.
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The study found that changes in the amino acids valine, leucine and tyrosine were associated with spontaneous preterm birth, while those in the metabolite acylcarnitine and the steroid hormone aldosterone were associated with medical preterm birth.
