Increased Proportion of Hematopoietic Stem and Progenitor Cell Population in Cord Blood of Neonates Born to Mothers with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

We assessed the hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell (HSPC) population in the cord blood of neonates born to mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in a hypothesis generating pilot study, due to that, neonatal polycythemia may be the consequence of GDM pregnancy. Forty-five pregnant women with GDM (last trimester mean HbA1C = 33.9 mmol/mol) and 42 (nondiabetic) control pregnant women were enrolled after their routine 75 g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) between the 24th and 28th gestational week (with expected differences in their mean routine clinical characteristics: plasma glucose at OGTT: 0′ = 5.07 vs. 4.62 mM, 120′ = 8.9 vs. 5.76 mM, age = 35.07 vs. 31.66 years, prepregnancy body mass index = 27.9 vs. 23.9 kg/m(2), GDM vs. control, respectively) on a voluntary basis after signing the informed consent. EDTA-treated cord blood samples were analyzed by flow cytometry and the software Kaluza1.2 using CD45 and CD34-specific fluorescent antibodies to identify the HSPC population (CD34(+) cells within the CD45(dim) blast gate). The proportion of CD34(+)CD45(dim) HSPCs among the nucleated cells was significantly (P < 0.05, statistical power = 60.8%) higher in the cord blood samples of neonates born to mothers with GDM (median 0.38%) compared to neonates born to nondiabetic mothers (median 0.32%) and according to treatment types (P < 0.05) median: control 0.32%, GDM-diet only 0.37%, GDM-on insulin 0.45%; control versus GDM on insulin (P < 0.05). The increased proportion of circulating CD34(+)CD45(dim) cells in the cord blood may possibly be related to altered fetal stem cell mobilization in GDM pregnancy, yet these results should be interpreted only as preliminary due to the small sample sizes.