International Journal of Preventive Medicine (Jan 2010)
Birth weight, cord blood lipoprotein and apolipoprotein levels in Indian newborns
Abstract
Objectives: Primordial prevention of chronic disease is of clinical and public health importance. Considering the fetal onset of atherosclerosis, we aimed to determine the cord blood level of lipoproteins and apolipoproteins as well as their correlation with birth weight and gestational age. Methods: This cross-sectional study comprised 100 healthy Indian newborns. Ten ml. of cord blood was collected from placental end of umbilical vein. Serum was separated by centrifugation and ana-lyzed on the same day for lipid profile including total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), high density lipoprotein- cholesterol (HDL-C), very low density lipoproteincholesterol (VLDL) and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), apolipoproteins A-I and B (ApoA-I, ApoB). Atherogenic index (AI) was calculated as the ratio of ApoB to ApoA-I. Results: Cord blood of female newborns had higher TC, HDL-C, LDL-C, Apo A-I, Apo B and AI as compared to male newborns, whereas TG and VLDL-C were higher in male than in female newborns. Significant positive correlation was observed between cord blood Apo A-I and HDL-C (r= 0.45, p0.05). Conclusions: These findings are another confirmatory evidence for the association of prenatal factors with cord blood lipid pro-file, and can serve as starting point for studying lipid transport system changes during early life.
