Microbiota-induced inflammation may trigger early-onset gestational diabetes
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Key takeaways:
- Researchers identified precursors for gestational diabetes that originated in the gut microbiota.
- Gestational diabetes pathology can be identified as early as the first trimester.
Gut microbial dysbiosis and resulting inflammation may play a role in the development of gestational diabetes mellitus as early as the first trimester of pregnancy, according to a report in Gut.
“Recognition of women at risk of gestational diabetes at an early stage of pregnancy may allow specific recommendations for prevention of the disease currently by lifestyle modification and in the future perhaps by specific pre-, pro- and postbiotic supplementation,” Omry Koren, MSc, PhD, lead study author and professor of medicine at Bar-Ilan University in Israel, said in a related press release.
Noting the increased incidence of gestational diabetes (GDM) worldwide, Koren and colleagues sought to better understand its pathophysiology and expand early-prediction efforts through the identification of GDM biomarkers in the first trimester (T1) of pregnancy.
In a prospective cohort study, they enrolled 394 pregnant women aged 18 to 40 years and assessed gut microbiome, metabolome, inflammatory cytokines, nutrition and clinical records prior to GDM diagnosis. Researchers then built a model that predicted GDM onset weeks before it is “typically diagnosed.”
During the second trimester of pregnancy, 11% of the cohort developed GDM, and the remaining women who did not served as controls.
According to researchers, the women diagnosed with GDM had common risk factors such as higher maternal age and pre-pregnancy BMI, as well as elevated levels of proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-4, IL-6, IL-8, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor and tumor necrosis factor. Researchers also reported decreased levels of fecal short-chain fatty acids isovalerate and isobutyrate in those with GDM.
Although researchers did not initially report significant differences in T1 gut microbiome composition between the GDM and healthy cohorts, after controlling for age and BMI, they found 15 underrepresented bacterial species among women in the GDM group, notably a lower abundance of Prevotella.
“We found broad and consistent evidence that GDM pathology begins as early as T1 in a large prospective cohort of pregnant women,” Koren and colleagues concluded. “Additionally, we successfully demonstrated that the precursors of GDM originate in the gut microbiota and that early-onset GDM has a bacterial signature at least partially responsible for the GDM phenotype.”
They continued, “Our findings suggest that GDM is induced through heightened inflammation, initiated by microbial dysbiosis. Future research based on our findings can help unravel the underlying mechanisms.”
Reference:
- Gut microbes can help diagnose gestational diabetes as early as the first trimester of pregnancy. https://www.newswise.com/articles/gut-microbes-can-help-diagnose-gestational-diabetes-as-early-as-the-first-trimester-of-pregnancy. Published March 22, 2023. Accessed April 4, 2023.
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