Journal
NUTRIENTS
Volume 14, Issue 18, Pages -Publisher
MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/nu14183801
Keywords
choline; DHA; pregnancy; genetic variants; one-carbon metabolism; PEMT
Categories
Funding
- Balchem Corporation
- Cornell Institute of Biotechnology's Center for Advanced Technology (CAT) grant through New York State Division of Science, Technology, and Innovation (NYSTAR)
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture US Department of Agriculture (NIFA/USDA), HATCH [1013729]
- NIH Training Grant [T32HD087137, T32ES027801]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
This study investigated the impact of genetic variants in one-carbon metabolism genes on DHA status, and found that genotype may influence maternal and fetal DHA levels, highlighting the importance of considering genetic variants in one-carbon metabolic genes during pregnancy.
The delivery of docosahexanoic acid (DHA) to the fetus is dependent on maternal one-carbon metabolism, as the latter supports the hepatic synthesis and export of a DHA-enriched phosphatidylcholine molecule via the phosphatidylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PEMT) pathway. The following is a post-hoc analysis of a choline intervention study that sought to investigate whether common variants in one-carbon metabolizing genes associate with maternal and/or fetal blood biomarkers of DHA status. Pregnant women entering their second trimester were randomized to consume, until delivery, either 25 (n = 15) or 550 (n = 15) mg choline/d, and the effects of genetic variants in the PEMT, BHMT, MTHFD1, and MTHFR genes on DHA status were examined. Variant (vs. non-variant) maternal PEMT rs4646343 genotypes tended to have lower maternal RBC DHA (% total fatty acids) throughout gestation (6.9% vs. 7.4%; main effect, p = 0.08) and lower cord RBC DHA at delivery (7.6% vs. 8.4%; main effect, p = 0.09). Conversely, variant (vs. non-variant) maternal MTHFD1 rs2235226 genotypes exhibited higher cord RBC DHA (8.3% vs. 7.3%; main effect, p = 0.0003) and higher cord plasma DHA (55 vs. 41 mu g/mL; main effect, p = 0.05). Genotype tended to interact with maternal choline intake (p < 0.1) to influence newborn DHA status for PEMT rs4646343 and PEMT rs7946. These data support the need to consider variants in one-carbon metabolic genes in studies assessing DHA status and requirements during pregnancy.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available