Chorioamnionitis alters lung surfactant lipidome in newborns with respiratory distress syndrome

Background Chorioamnionitis is associated with preterm delivery and morbidities; its role in lung disease is controversial. The aim of this study is to assess the effect of chorioamnionitis on metabolite and lipid profiles of epithelial lining fluid in preterm newborns with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). Methods The study involved 30 newborns with RDS, born from mothers with or without histological chorioamnionitis (HCA): HCA+, N = 10; HCA-, N = 20. Patients had a gestational age <= 30 weeks; the groups were matched for age and birth weights. Tracheal aspirates were collected within 24 h after birth and analyzed using liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry-based untargeted lipidomics. Results According to Mann-Whitney U tests, 570 metabolite features had statistically significantly higher or lower concentrations (p < 0.05) in tracheal aspirates of HCA+ compared to HCA-, and 241 metabolite features were putatively annotated and classified. The most relevant changes involved higher levels of glycerophospholipids (fold change 2.42-17.69) and sphingolipids, with lower concentration of all annotated sphingomyelins in HCA+ (fold change 0.01-0.50). Conclusions Untargeted lipidomics of tracheal aspirates suggested the production of lipid mediators in the context of an ongoing inflammatory status in HCA+ babies. However, the effect of chorioamnionitis on epithelial lining fluid composition deserves further investigations on a larger group of infants. Impact Our lipidomics investigation on tracheal aspirates of preterm newborns at birth suggested that exposure to maternal histological chorioamnionitis may cause changes in epithelial lining fluid composition. This is the first description of epithelial lining fluid lipidomic profiles in preterm infants with and without exposition to chorioamnionitis. These results could provide novel link between placental membrane inflammation and newborns' respiratory outcome.

Automated summary

This study investigated the impact of chorioamnionitis on lipid and metabolite profiles in the epithelial lining fluid of preterm newborns with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). Results indicated potential inflammatory changes in the lungs of newborns exposed to maternal chorioamnionitis, highlighting the need for further research on a larger scale. These findings offer new insights into the relationship between placental inflammation and respiratory outcomes in newborns.