Lactoferrin level in maternal serum is related to birth anthropometry - an evidence for an indirect biomarker of intrauterine homeostasis?

Objective: To investigate the relation between level of antibodies against lactoferrin (LfAb) in maternal serum (MS) and birth anthropometry of healthy full-term newborns.Methods: The study included 105 pairs of mother-newborn. MS LfAb level was determined using ELISA kit. Spearman's correlation and Kruskal-Wallis one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were applied to establish the relationship between MS LfAb level and birth weight (BW), birth weight-to-birth length ratio (BW/BL), and head circumference (HC) of newborns.Results: The U-shaped relation of MS LfAb and BW was demonstrated (p = .019). Negative correlation between MS LfAb and BW/BL was observed (p = .016). The most optimal birth weight and body proportion were observed in newborns of mothers with MS LfAb level of 49 ± 4 U/ml.Conclusions: Significant relationship between MS LfAb and birth anthropometry suggests serum Lf of pregnant women can be considered as a promising indirect biomarker of intrauterine homeostasis, verifiable noninvasively already during pregnancy and thus allowing predict, or even prevent, potential short- and long-term postnatal health consequences.

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