Early Pregnancy Maternal Hepatocyte Growth Factor and Risk of Gestational Diabetes

AIMS We investigated associations of serum hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) with risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). We also examined whether pre-pregnancy overweight/obesity status or leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) modify these associations. METHODS In a nested case-control study (173 GDM cases and 187 controls) among participants of a pregnancy cohort, early pregnancy (16 weeks of gestation, on average) serum HGF was measured using enzyme-linked immunoassay. GDM was diagnosed using American Diabetes Association guidelines. Logistic regression was used to calculate odd ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Effect modifications by pre-pregnancy overweight/obesity status or LTPA during pregnancy were examined using stratified analyses and interaction terms. RESULTS Overall, we did not find significant associations of serum HGF with GDM risk (p-value> 0.05). However, compared with women who had low serum HGF concentrations (<2.29 ng/ml), women with high serum HGF concentrations (≥ 2.29 ng/ml) had 3.8-fold (95%CI: 1.30-10.98) and 4.5-fold (95%CI: 1.28-15.80) higher GDM risk among women who were overweight/obese, pre-pregnancy (body mass index≥25 kg/m2), or did not report LTPA, respectively. These associations were not present among women who were not overweight/obese (interaction p=0.05) or reported LTPA (interaction p=0.05). CONCLUSION Overweight/obesity status and LTPA may modify associations of early pregnancy serum HGF with subsequent GDM risk.