Cord Leptin is Associated with Neuropsychomotor Development in Childhood

Objective: Leptin is critical for central nervous system development and maturation. This study aimed to evaluate the potential regulatory role of cord leptin in the neuropsychomotor development of children ages 18 months to 6 years. Methods: This study included 424 children from a prospective mother-child cohort (Rhea Study; Crete, Greece) with available cord leptin levels and data on neurodevelopmental outcomes at 18 months (Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third Edition), 4 years (McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities), and 6 years (Raven's Coloured Progressive Matrices and Trail Making Test). Multivariable linear regression models were used to explore the associations. Results: Each 10-ng/mL increase in the cord leptin level was associated with increased scores on the gross motor scale at 18 months (β coefficient: 3.8; 95% CI: 0.0-7.5), with decreased scores in the general cognitive performance (β coefficient: −3.0; 95% CI: −5.5 to −0.4), perceptual performance (β coefficient: −3.4; 95% CI: −6.0 to −9.9), working memory (β coefficient: −3.1; 95% CI: −5.7 to −0.4), executive function (β coefficient −3.1; 95% CI: −5.7 to −0.5), and functions of the posterior cortex (β coefficient: −2.7; 95% CI: −5.2 to −0.1) scales at 4 years, and with a 3.7-unit decrease in the Raven's Coloured Progressive Matrices score at 6 years (β coefficient: −3.7; 95% CI: −6.9 to −0.5). Conclusions: Increased cord leptin levels are associated with enhanced gross motor development at 18 months but decreased cognitive performance in early and middle childhood. © 2019 The Obesity Societ

Unraveling the Serum Metabolomic Profile of Post-partum Depression

Post-partum depression (PPD) is a severe psychiatric disorder affecting similar to 15% of young mothers. Early life stressful conditions in periconceptual, fetal and early infant periods or exposure to maternal psychiatric disorders, have been linked to adverse childhood outcomes interfering with physiological, cognitive and emotional development. The molecular mechanisms of PPD are not yet fully understood. Unraveling the molecular underpinnings of PPD will allow timely detection and establishment of effective therapeutic approaches. To investigate the underlying molecular correlates of PPD in peripheral material, we compared the serum metabolomes of an in detail characterized group of mothers suffering from PPD and a control group of mothers, all from Heraklion, Crete in Greece. Serum samples were analyzed by a mass spectrometry platform for targeted metabolomics, based on selected reaction monitoring (SRM), which measures the levels of up to 300 metabolites. In the PPD group, we observed increased levels of glutathione-disulfide, adenylosuccinate, and ATP, which associate with oxidative stress, nucleotide biosynthesis and energy production pathways. We also followed up the metabolomic findings in a validation cohort of PPD mothers and controls. To the very best of our knowledge, this is the first metabolomic serum analysis in PPD. Our data show that molecular changes related to PPD are detectable in peripheral material, thus paving the way for additional studies in order to shed light on the molecular correlates of PPD