GUT MICROBIOTA ACROSS NORMAL GESTATION AND GESTATIONAL DIABETES
MELLITUS: A COHORT ANALYSIS
Abstract
Objective: High prevalence rates of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM)
is a public health concern worldwide. The mechanism that leads to
glucose tolerance beyond normal physiological levels to pathogenic
conditions remains incompletely understood, and it is speculated that
the maternal microbiome may play an important role. The objective of
this study is to analyze the gut microbiota composition in each
trimester of weight-matched women with and without GDM and examined
possible bacterial genera associations. Design: A cohort study. Setting:
This study was conducted in an outpatient clinic at the Federal
University of São Paulo. Population: 56 women with GDM and 59 without
during their first/second or third trimester of gestation. Methods: They
were submitted to a standardized questionnaire, dietary recalls,
clinical examination, biological samples collection and molecular
profile of the fecal microbiota. Results: There was no difference in the
alpha diversity and in the overall microbiota structure. A higher
abundance of Bacteroides in GDM group was found. A positive correlation
between Christensenellaceae and Intestinobacter abundances with 1-hour
post-challenge plasma glucose and a negative correlation between
Enterococcus and 2-hour plasma glucose level were observed.
Bifidobacterium and Peptococcus abundances were increased in the third
gestational trimester for both groups. Conclusion: The gut microbiota
composition wasn’t dependent on the presence of GDM during the whole
gestation. However, some genera abundances showed associations with
glucose metabolism. Our findings may motivate deepening the knowledge
about physiological and pathophysiological changes in the microbiota
throughout pregnancy, which could have further implications for diseases
prevention.