ORCID Profile
0000-0002-9551-4869
Current Organisation
The University of Auckland
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Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2017
DOI: 10.1016/J.EARLHUMDEV.2017.09.012
Abstract: Olfaction and gustation are critical for the enjoyment of food but also have important metabolic roles, initiating the cephalic phase response that sets in train secretion of hormones important for metabolism and digestion before any food is actually ingested. Smell and taste receptors are functional in the fetus and there is evidence for antenatal learning of odours. Despite enteral nutrition and metabolism being major issues in the care of very preterm infants, often little consideration is given to the potential role of smell and taste in supporting these processes, or in the role they may have in encoding hypothalamic circuitry in a way that promotes healthy metabolism in the post‑neonatal period. This review will discuss the evidence for the role of smell and taste in the newborn infant.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 29-07-2021
DOI: 10.1038/S41390-020-1069-1
Abstract: Infants born moderate to late preterm constitute the majority of preterm births, yet guidelines for their nutritional care are unclear. Maternal milk is the most appropriate nutrition for these infants however, its composition can be influenced by environmental factors. The present study therefore investigated perinatal predictors of human milk composition in a preterm cohort. Milk was collected during the DIAMOND trial (DIfferent Approaches to Moderate and late preterm Nutrition: Determinants of feed tolerance, body composition and development) from 169 mothers of 191 infants at three time-points (5 and 10 days post partum and 4 months' corrected age). Leptin, adiponectin and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) were analysed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Generalised mixed models were used to evaluate associations between milk composition and maternal/infant erinatal factors. Most findings were independent of collection time-point. Gestational diabetes was associated with lower adiponectin. Higher adiponectin and lower leptin were associated with higher socioeconomic status, higher maternal education and ability to fully breastfeed at discharge from hospital. Higher leptin was associated with high perceived stress during hospital admission. Milk IGF-1 displayed sex-specific patterns in association with maternal social deprivation. Maternal, infant and environmental factors during the perinatal period were associated with milk compositional profiles throughout lactation. Further clinical trials should investigate the impact of such changes in terms of long-term infant outcomes. Human milk is the best nutrition for the infant. However, its composition may be susceptible to alterations determined by pathological conditions mother and infant may face throughout pregnancy and in the perinatal period. This study found that perinatal factors are associated with human milk composition from early to late lactation. If human milk composition throughout lactation is "programmed" during pregnancy or early lactation, infants who were exposed in utero to environmental insults may still be exposed to them during lactation. The impact of human milk compositional alteration on infant growth following perinatal pathological events requires further investigation.
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 27-09-2022
Abstract: Glucocorticoids (GCs), cortisol and cortisone, are essential regulators of many physiological responses, including immunity, stress and mammary gland function. GCs are present in human milk (HM), but whether maternal and infant factors are associated with HM GC concentration following preterm birth is unclear. HM s les were collected on postnatal day 5 and 10 and at 4 months’ corrected age (4m CA) in a cohort of moderate- and late-preterm infants. GCs in HM were measured by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Relationships between GCs in HM and both maternal and infant characteristics were investigated using Spearman’s correlations and linear mixed models. 170 mothers of 191 infants provided 354 HM s les. Cortisol concentrations in HM increased from postnatal day 5–4m CA (mean difference [MD] 0.6 ± 0.1 ng/ml, p & 0.001). Cortisone concentration did not change across lactation but was higher than cortisol throughout. Compared to no antenatal corticosteroid (ANS), a complete course of ANS was associated with lower GC concentrations in HM through to 4m CA (cortisol: MD –0.3 ± 0.1 ng/ml, p & 0.01 cortisone MD –1.8 ± 0.4 ng/ml, p & 0.001). At 4m CA, higher maternal perceived stress was negatively associated with GC concentrations in HM (cortisol adjusted beta-coefficient [aβ] –0.01 ± 0.01 ng/ml, p = 0.05 and cortisone aβ –0.1 ± 0.03 ng/ml, p = 0.01), whereas higher postpartum depression and maternal obesity were associated with lower cortisone concentrations (aβ –0.1 ± 0.04 ng/ml p & 0.05 MD [healthy versus obese] –0.1 ± 0.04 ng/ml p & 0.05, respectively). There was a weak positive correlation between GC concentrations in HM and gestational age at birth ( r = 0.1, p & 0.05). Infant birth head circumference z -score was negatively associated with cortisol concentrations (aβ –0.01 ± 0.04 ng/ml, p & 0.05). At hospital discharge, fat-free mass showed a weak positive correlation with cortisol concentrations ( r = 0.2, p = 0.03), while fat mass showed a weak negative correlation with cortisone concentrations ( r = –0.25, p & 0.001). The mammary gland appears to protect the infant from cortisol through inactivation into cortisone. Maternal and infant characteristics were associated with concentration of GCs in HM, including ANS, stress and depression scores, obesity, gestational age and infant size. The effects of HM glucocorticoids on long-term health outcomes requires further research.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 07-07-2018
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 28-05-2021
Abstract: Background: Differing environmental conditions experienced by mother-infant dyads may influence composition of the milk received by the infant. As a consequence, erse milk compositional profiles may contribute to different postnatal outcomes, especially in infants facing adverse perinatal environments. We investigated whether variability in milk concentrations of key metabolic hormones is associated with different growth outcomes in infants born preterm, a perinatal complication known to impact on infant growth. Methods: Human milk s les were collected from 169 mothers of 191 infants enrolled in the DIAMOND trial, a randomized trial of nutrition for moderate-late preterm infants, at 5 and 10 days postpartum and again at 4 months' corrected age and analyzed for leptin, adiponectin and insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1. Infant weight and body composition were measured at birth, discharge and 4 months' corrected age. Multiple linear regression models were used to examine correlations between milk hormone concentrations, weight z-scores and body composition at discharge and 4 months' corrected age, and weight gain from birth to 4 months' corrected age. Sex-specific interactions were examined. Results: Higher milk IGF-1 concentrations on day 5 after birth were associated with greater infant fat-free mass at 4 months' corrected age. Milk IGF-1 concentrations at 4 months were positively associated with fat mass and fat-free mass at 4 months in boys but not girls. Milk leptin concentrations on day 5 after birth were positively associated with fat mass at discharge from hospital, but negatively associated with fat mass at 4 months' corrected age. No significant association was found for milk adiponectin concentrations. Conclusion: Milk IGF-1 and leptin concentrations in mothers of moderate-late preterm babies are associated with different growth and body composition through to 4 months' corrected age and these associations are often different in boys and girls. The sex-specific effects of nutrient and hormone exposure during early life in preterm infants warrants further investigation to optimize the nutritional care these infants receive, particularly in hospital, where the same nutrition is provided to boys and girls.
No related grants have been discovered for Mariana Muelbert.