Location: Obesity and Metabolism Research Unit
Title: Evidence of associations between feto-maternal vitamin D status, cord parathyroid hormone and bone-specific alkaline phosphatase, and newborn whole body bone mineral content Authors
Submitted to: Nutrients
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: January 30, 2012
Publication Date: February 6, 2012
Repository URL: http://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/4/2/68
Citation: Dror, D.K., King, J.C., Fung, E.B., Van Loan, M.D., Gertz, E.R., Allen, L.H. 2012. Evidence of associations between feto-maternal vitamin D status, cord parathyroid hormone and bone-specific alkaline phosphatase, and newborn whole body bone mineral content. Nutrients. 4:68-77. Interpretive Summary: This study provides evidence of associations between feto-maternal vitamin D status, cord PTH and BALP, and neonatal WBBMC, though neither cord nor maternal 25(OH)D were directly correlated with WBBMC. Cord PTH and BALP were statistically but not clinically significant predictors of neonatal WBBMC, which was most strongly predicted by infant weight. Because vitamin D inadequacy during gestation and its impacts on offspring bone integrity are of public health concern, further studies are warranted to investigate the complex mechanisms linking in utero vitamin D status to fetal bone development.
Technical Abstract: In spite of a high prevalence of vitamin D inadequacy in pregnant women and neonates, relationships among vitamin D status [25(OH)D], parathyroid hormone (PTH), bone specific alkaline phosphatase (BALP), and whole body bone mineral content (WBBMC) in the newborn are poorly characterized. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the relationships between maternal and cord 25(OH)D, PTH, BALP, and WBBMC in newborns in a multiethnic population in Oakland, California and to evaluate the predictive value of the biochemical indices as indicators of WBBMC. Maternal and cord blood were collected from 80 mother-infant pairs and infant WBBMC was measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry 8-21 d post-birth. Cord PTH and BALP were each inversely correlated with infant WBBMC (r = -0.28, p = 0.01 and r = -0.26, p = 0.02) and with cord 25(OH)D (r = -0.24, p = 0.03 and r = -0.34, p = 0.002), while cord 25(OH)D and unadjusted or weight-adjusted WBBMC were not significantly correlated with one other. In multivariate regression modeling, infant WBBMC was most strongly predicted by infant weight (p < 0.0001), while either PTH or BALP contributed modestly but significantly to the model (p = 0.006 and p = 0.03 respectively). Cord 25(OH)D was not a significant predictor of infant WBBMC. This study provides evidence of associations between feto-maternal 25(OH)D, cord PTH and BALP, and early infant WBBMC, though neither feto-maternal 25(OH)D nor the measured biochemical indices were suitable indicators of WBBMC.