Features of the immune system of children born to women with gestational diabetes mellitus

• Main Authors: G. N. Chistyakova, I. I. Remizova, I. A. Gazieva, V. A. Lyapunov, L. S. Ustyantseva
• Format: Article
• Language: Russian
• Published: Ltd. “The National Academy of Pediatric Science and Innovation” 2016-03-01
• Series: Rossijskij Vestnik Perinatologii i Pediatrii
• Subjects: neonatal infants; gestational diabetes mellitus; umbilical cord blood; immunity
• Online Access: https://www.ped-perinatology.ru/jour/article/view/74
• ISSN: 1027-4065; 2500-2228

Objective: to assess the state of the immune system in children born to women with gestational diabetes. Forty-two of umbilical cord blood samples from full-term infants, including 22 babies born to women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) (a study group) and 20 born to those without this condition (a comparison group), were explored. Flow cytofluorometry was used to measure the counts of major T- and B- lymphocyte population, the level of expression of activation markers on monocytes (CD14+ HLA-DR+) and lymphocytes (CD25, CD69), as well as markers characterizing the functional maturity of cells (CD45R0, CD45RA) in both the total lymphocyte pool and T cell population. The serum levels of IL-1β, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α, and IFN-γ were estimated by ELISA. The immune system of the infants born to women with GDM was established to be characterized by a decrease in the relative count of CD3+, CD4+ and CD3+CD45RA+ cells and in the expression of activation markers (CD25+, CD4+ CD25+ and CD14+ HLA-DR+) in conjunction with an increase in the absolute count of primed T lymphocytes and in the levels of natural killer cells and IL-8. This investigation provides a way of identifying a group at risk for postnatal infectious diseases. The decline in the indicators of innate and adaptive immunity in the umbilical cord blood may be a ground for ultrasonography in newborn babies born to women with GDM to detect thymic abnormalities.