Placental 11b-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase expression and birth weight in Hamilton County, TN

Infants born below 2,500 grams are classified as low birth w eight. Reduced birth weight has been shown to increase the risk of infant mortality and chronic adulthood diseases. In 2007, Hamilton Country reported 12.0% of live births to be low birth weight, compared to the state average of 9.4%. An excess in utero exposure to cortisol has been linked to restricted fetal growth. Placental production of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 (11β-HSD2) inactivates cortisol before passage into the fetus. This study tests the hypothesis that increased placental 11β-HSD2 expression has a positive correlation with an individualized birth weight centile. A Spearman's rank correlation reported a significant correlation between these two variables (p = 0.024). Additionally, birth weight was significantly different between underweight and obese mothers, married vs. single mothers and black vs. white mothers. These results reinforce the importance of proper 11β-HSD2 expression for optimal fetal growth.

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Author dc:creator

• Mikelson, Colleen Katherine

Contributors dc:contributor

• Richards, Sean M.
• Kovach, Margaret J.; Symes, Steve; Adair, C. David
• College of Arts and Sciences

• Birth weight, Low

Licence

• https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en

Language dc:language

English, eng

Repository record dc:identifier

https://scholar.utc.edu/theses/340

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholar.utc.edu:theses-1480