This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a related Letter to the Editor Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Copyright Permission Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Chen, X. Articles by Scholl, T. O. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Chen, X. Articles by Scholl, T. O.

Ethnic Differences in C-Peptide/Insulin/Glucose Dynamics in Young Pregnant Women

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, School of Osteopathic Medicine, Stratford, New Jersey 08084

Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Dr. Theresa O. Scholl, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, School of Medicine, 2 Medical Drive, Science Center, Suite 185, Stratford, New Jersey 08084. E-mail: scholl{at}umdnj.edu.

Abstract

There are ethnic differences in insulin secretion and resistance in healthy nondiabetic adults, children, and adolescents. It is not known whether these ethnic differences are also detectable during normal pregnancy. The objective of this study was to examine whether ethnic differences in glucose homeostasis (C-peptide/insulin/glucose dynamics) are present in nondiabetic pregnant women. Fasting serum C-peptide, insulin, and plasma glucose were measured in the second and third trimesters in 773 pregnant women (343 African-Americans, 312 Hispanics, and 118 Caucasians), and a 50-g oral glucose challenge test was performed in the third trimester. Significantly reduced C-peptide levels and C-peptide to insulin ratio and elevated fasting insulin to glucose ratios were observed in African-American women compared with Caucasians and/or Hispanics. Similar results were found after a 50-g glucose load. In addition, African-Americans had greater insulin and lower glucose levels at glucose challenge test. There were ethnic differences in insulin production and resistance in both fasting and glucose-stimulated conditions in normal young nondiabetic pregnant women.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. Retnakaran, A. J. G. Hanley, P. W. Connelly, M. Sermer, and B. Zinman Ethnicity Modifies the Effect of Obesity on Insulin Resistance in Pregnancy: A Comparison of Asian, South Asian, and Caucasian Women J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., January 1, 2006; 91(1): 93 - 97. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				T. O. Scholl, X. Chen, C. S. Khoo, and C. Lenders The Dietary Glycemic Index during Pregnancy: Influence on Infant Birth Weight, Fetal Growth, and Biomarkers of Carbohydrate Metabolism Am. J. Epidemiol., March 1, 2004; 159(5): 467 - 474. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				X. Chen, T. O. Scholl, M. J. Leskiw, M. R. Donaldson, and T. P. Stein Association of Glutathione Peroxidase Activity with Insulin Resistance and Dietary Fat Intake during Normal Pregnancy J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., December 1, 2003; 88(12): 5963 - 5968. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]