Study: Heat exposure during pregnancy may disrupt key stress-related molecules

An exposure to high temperatures during pregnancy could be disrupting amino acids and vitamins key to managing stress and energy thereby increasing the risk of a premature delivery suggests an analysis of blood samplesStudies have observed a link between warmer ambient temperatures and preterm births where a baby is born before 37 weeks of pregnancyThe analysis published in the journal Science Advances looked at small molecules or molecular fingerprints in blood samples of 215 pregnant women who were residents of the US metropolitan city of Atlanta and matched residential addresses with the maximum ambient temperatures experienced throughout their pregnanciesThe firstofitskind study by researchers at Emory University found a disruption in levels of naturally occurring substances in blood such as methionine proline citrulline and pipecolate when ambient temperatures were higherMethionine is an essential amino acid obtained through diet while citrulline is a metabolite produced as part of the bodys urea cycle Pipecolate is found in the liver and is involved in how the body responds to oxidative stressWe used the innovative metabolomic technology to specifically focus on the small molecules or molecular fingerprints as we call it and learned for the first time that when the weather was hotter the mothers blood shows some measurable changes in several important molecules and pathways that manage how the body deals with stress or makes energy lead author Donghai Liang associate professor of environmental health at Emory Universitys school of public health saidAnd these same kinds of changes were also seen in those mothers who gave birth prematurely Liang saidEvidence from previous studies have suggested that warmer weather conditions can impact biological processes such as production of oxidative stress heart function and inflammation the researchers saidHowever the analysis is the first to pinpoint potential molecules and pathways associated with heat and premature birth outcomes they addedThe authors identified 23 metabolic pathways and four overlapping metabolites including methionine proline citrulline and pipecolate associated with both temperature exposure and PTB preterm birth These metabolites are involved in amino acid metabolism and oxidative stress regulationFindings highlight the potential of metabolomics to detect early biological alterations linked to environmental risk and adverse birth outcomes they wroteEvery 1 degree Celsius increase in the average daily maximum ambient temperature between conception and early pregnancy was found to be associated with higher levels of methionine while that between conception and late pregnancy was associated with lower levels of citrulline pipecolate and prolineBy identifying these shared metabolic pathways between hotter temperatures and preterm births this study could open the door to developing early biomarkers that could help identify pregnancies at higher risk and potentially inform prevention strategies or clinical interventions to support healthier pregnancies Liang saidData for the analysis was taken from the Atlanta African American MaternalChild Cohort study that started in 2014This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever