Effect of HCV infection on glucose metabolism in pregnant women with HIV receiving HAART

Gestational diabetes mellitus in HIV-infected pregnant women: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Impaired glucose metabolism during pregnancy can result in a significant adverse pregnancy-outcomes. Previous studies have reported the contribution of ART to the impaired glucose tolerance and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in HIV-infected pregnant women.

METHODS

PRISMA guideline was followed for this systematic review and meta-analysis. The STATA version 11 was employed to compute the pooled prevalence of GDM using the random effect model and 95% confidence interval. Subgroup analysis was conducted by geographical regions. Visual inspection of the funnel plot and Egger's regression test statistic were used to show the publication bias.

RESULTS

A total of 13,517 articles were identified, of which 21 publications met the inclusion criteria. The pooled prevalence of GDM among HIV-infected pregnant women was 4.42% (95% CI: 3.48; 5.35). According to the subgroup analysis, the pooled prevalence of GDM among HIV-infected pregnant women was 7.1% (95%CI: 3.38; 10.76) in Asia, 5.83% (95% CI: 2.61; 9.04) in Europe, 3.58% (95% CI: 2.67; 4.50) in America and 3.19% (95% CI: -2.89; 9.27) in Africa.

CONCLUSION

The pooled prevalence of GDM among HIV-infected pregnant women is expectedly high. Therefore, early screening of HIV-infected pregnant women for GDM is vital to reduce its complications related to pregnancy.

PROTOCOL REGISTRATION NUMBER

International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews CRD42018090735.

Lipopolysaccharide and double stranded viral RNA mediate insulin resistance and increase system a amino acid transport in human trophoblast cells in vitro

INTRODUCTION

Inflammation and underlying low-grade maternal infection can impair insulin signalling and upregulate nutrient transport in the placenta which contribute to fetal overgrowth associated with GDM and/or obese pregnancies. There are, however, no studies on the role of infection on placental nutrient transport in pregnancies complicated by GDM and/or obesity. Thus, the aims of this study were to determine the effect of the bacterial product lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or the viral dsRNA analogue polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (poly(I:C)) on the insulin signalling pathway and amino acid transport in primary human trophoblast cells.

METHODS

Human primary villous trophoblast cells were treated with LPS or poly(I:C). Protein expression of insulin signalling pathway proteins, insulin receptor (IR)-β, insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1 and protein kinase B (also known as Akt), and phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase p85α subunit (PI3K-p85α) protein were assessed by Western blotting. Glucose and amino acid uptake were assessed by radiolabelled assay. Western blotting and qRT-PCR were used to determine amino acid transporter protein and mRNA expression, respectively.

RESULTS

LPS and poly(I:C) significantly decreased phosphorylation of IR-β, IRS-1, Akt, total PI3K-p85α protein expression and glucose uptake. LPS and poly(I:C) also significantly increased expression of System A amino acid transporters SNAT1 and SNAT2, and System A-mediated uptake of amino acids.

DISCUSSION

LPS and poly(I:C) induces insulin resistance and increases amino acid uptake in human primary trophoblast cells. This suggests that the presence of low-grade maternal infection can contribute to excess placental nutrient availability and promote fetal overgrowth in pregnancies complicated by GDM and/or obesity.

Endoplasmic reticulum stress regulates inflammation and insulin resistance in skeletal muscle from pregnant women

Sterile inflammation and infection are key mediators of inflammation and peripheral insulin resistance associated with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Studies have shown endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress to induce inflammation and insulin resistance associated with obesity and type 2 diabetes, however is paucity of studies investigating the effects of ER stress in skeletal muscle on inflammation and insulin resistance associated with GDM. ER stress proteins IRE1α, GRP78 and XBP-1s were upregulated in skeletal muscle of obese pregnant women, whereas IRE1α was increased in GDM women. Suppression of ER stress, using ER stress inhibitor tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) or siRNA knockdown of IRE1α and GRP78, significantly downregulated LPS-, poly(I:C)- or IL-1β-induced production of IL-6, IL-8, IL-1β and MCP-1. Furthermore, LPS-, poly(I:C)- or TNF-α-induced insulin resistance was improved following suppression of ER stress, by increasing insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of IR-β, IRS-1, GLUT-4 expression and glucose uptake. In summary, our inducible obesity and GDM-like models suggests that the development of GDM may be involved in activating ER stress-induced inflammation and insulin resistance in human skeletal muscle.