Obesity and Adipose Tissue Inflammation in Pregnant Mothers

To date very little research has been conducted on pregnant mothers. Research shows that mothers with obesity and gestational diabetes have children who have a higher risk of later developing obesity and diabetes compared to children born to non-obese mothers but the mechanisms are not known. The maternal environment may place these babies at greater risk and it is possible that fat tissue (adipose tissue) releases many chemicals (adipokines and inflammatory cytokines) which may have an impact on the baby. Mothers who have greater amounts of adipose tissue most likely release these adipokines into the baby and it may affect the baby's body composition and/or health. This project will establish if there is a relationship between obesity and adipose tissue inflammation in pregnant mothers, and if there is a link between inflammation and the child's body composition. We will recruit mothers with low risk pregnancies already schedule for a C section at about 36 wk. We will do initial testing at 36 wk, adipose tissue collection at delivery, and conduct post testing at 1 month postpartum on the mother and the baby.