J Korean Pediatr Soc.  1998 Nov;41(11):1484-1490.

Profile of Insulin, Growth Hormone and Insulin-like Growth Factors in Human Cord Blood According to Birth Weight

• Kim HY
• Lee DY
• Cho SC

Abstract

PURPOSE: Insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) are mitogenic peptides that are essential for fetal and maternal tissue growth during pregnancy. They circulate primarily with serum IGF-binding protein (IGFBP) which regulates the availability of IGFs to their specific target tissue. This study was performed to examine the relationships between birth weight and IGFs, insulin and growth hormone in the sera of cord blood.
METHODS
Fetal serum samples were obtained by direct puncture of the umbilical cord and were stored at -20degrees C until assay. Serum IGF-I, insulin and growth hormone were measured by radioimmunoassay. IGF-II and IGFBP-1 were measured by immunoradiometric assay.
RESULTS
The values of insulin, growth hormone, and IGFBP-1 in the cord blood did not significantly correlate with birth weight or gestational age. The values of IGF-I significantly correlated with gestational age (P<0.05). The correlation of IGF-I and birth weight was statistically significant (P<0.05). IGF-II in the sera of cord blood did not significantly correlate with birth weight.
CONCLUSION
Cord blood IGF-I level strongly correlated with birth weight, which suggests that IGF-I may play an important role in fetal growth.

Keyword

Insulin-like growth factor-I; Birth weight

MeSH Terms

Birth Weight*
Fetal Blood*
Fetal Development
Gestational Age
Growth Hormone*
Humans*
Immunoradiometric Assay
Insulin*
Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 1
Insulin-Like Growth Factor I
Insulin-Like Growth Factor II
Parturition*
Peptides
Pregnancy
Punctures
Radioimmunoassay
Somatomedins*
Umbilical Cord
Growth Hormone
Insulin
Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 1
Insulin-Like Growth Factor I
Insulin-Like Growth Factor II
Peptides
Somatomedins