Lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase 1 protein is present in maternal blood in the third trimester and is upregulated by antenatal corticosteroids

Katherine J. Kramer; Neeraja Purandare; Siddhesh Aras; Fatemeh Parsian; Sandra Sadek; Conrad Chao; Robert A. Welch; Maurice-Andre Recanati

doi:10.1515/jpm-2022-0150

Article

Lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase 1 protein is present in maternal blood in the third trimester and is upregulated by antenatal corticosteroids

Katherine J. Kramer , Neeraja Purandare , Siddhesh Aras , Fatemeh Parsian , Sandra Sadek , Conrad Chao , Robert A. Welch and Maurice-Andre Recanati

Published/Copyright: September 12, 2022

Published by

Become an author with De Gruyter Brill

Submit Manuscript Author Information Explore this Subject

From the journal Journal of Perinatal Medicine Volume 51 Issue 3

Abstract

Objectives

Lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase 1 (LPCAT1) is involved in the production of fetal lung surfactant. We have shown that LPCAT1 mRNA is present in amniotic fluid and maternal plasma and that its quantity correlates with the amniotic fluid lamellar body count. The purpose of the present study was to assay maternal plasma for the LPCAT1 protein in term and preterm pregnancies; and to measure the impact of antenatal corticosteroids.

Methods

Maternal and newborn plasma samples were obtained from 7 women admitted to the hospital for induction of labor. Maternal plasma was also obtained before administration of corticosteroids and 24 h after the second dose of corticosteroids from 12 women with premature labor and premature rupture of membranes. After sample preparation, LPCAT1 protein levels were determined using sandwich ELISA.

Results

We discovered LPCAT1 protein in maternal plasma in measurable quantities after 32 weeks gestation. Further, there was a rise of maternal plasma LPCAT1 in response to the clinical administration of antenatal corticosteroids.

Conclusions

Quantitation of maternal plasma LPCAT1 protein offers promise in the ongoing study of fetal lung maturation.

Keywords: fetal lung maturation; LPCAT1; maternal blood; steroid response; surfactant

Corresponding author: Maurice-Andre Recanati, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA, Phone: +917 331 6203, E-mail: marecanati@wayne.edu

Acknowledgments

This research was made possible by the work and dedication of the obstetrics and gynecology residents at Wayne State University and Hurley Medical Center and by the faculty and staff at those institutions. MAR also wishes to thank the NIH Women’s Reproductive Health Research (WRHR) at Wayne State University for support.

Research funding: This work was supported by a National Institutes of Health Women’s Reproductive Health Research (WRHR) career development award (K12HD001254-17) awarded to one of the authors.
Author contributions: KJK: conception, draft original manuscript, created figures; NP: interpretation, assisted in creating figures; SA: guidance and direction, rewrote parts of manuscript; FP: collected specimens, responsible for accuracy and integrity; SS: rewrote parts of manuscript, intellectual contributions regarding patient care; CC: statistical analysis, important intellectual contributions; RW: rewrote parts of manuscript, conception, guidance and direction; MAR: conception and study design, performed benchwork assays; statistical analysis, interpretation, wrote parts of manuscript. All authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission.
Competing interests: Authors state no conflict of interest.
Informed consent: Written informed consent was obtained from all individuals included in this study.
Ethical approval: This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board at Wayne State University (IRB #041717MP2F) and at Hurley Medical Center (1570150-2) and involved the collection of maternal blood at both institutions. All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and national research committees and with the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

References

1. Bridges, JP, Ikegami, M, Brilli, LL, Chen, X, Mason, RJ, Shannon, JM. LPCAT1 regulates surfactant phospholipid synthesis and is required for transitioning to air breathing in mice. J Clin Invest 2010;120:1736–48. https://doi.org/10.1172/jci38061c1.Search in Google Scholar

2. Gregory, TJ, Longmore, WJ, Moxley, MA, Whitsett, JA, Reed, CR, Fowler, AA3rd, et al.. Surfactant chemical composition and biophysical activity in acute respiratory distress syndrome. J Clin Invest 1991;88:1976–81. https://doi.org/10.1172/jci115523.Search in Google Scholar PubMed PubMed Central

3. Hawgood, S, Clements, JA. Pulmonary surfactant and its apoproteins. J Clin Invest 1990;86:1–6. https://doi.org/10.1172/jci114670.Search in Google Scholar PubMed PubMed Central

4. Harayama, T, Shindou, H, Shimizu, T. Biosynthesis of phosphatidylcholine by human lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase 1. J Lipid Res 2009;50:1824–31. https://doi.org/10.1194/jlr.m800500-jlr200.Search in Google Scholar PubMed PubMed Central

5. Welch, RA, Shaw, MK, Welch, KC. Amniotic fluid LPCAT1 mRNA correlates with the lamellar body count. J Perinat Med 2016;44:531–2. https://doi.org/10.1515/jpm-2015-0008.Search in Google Scholar PubMed

6. Welch, RA, Recanati, MA, Welch, KC, Shaw, MK. Maternal plasma LPCAT 1 mRNA correlates with lamellar body count. J Perinat Med 2018;46:429–31. https://doi.org/10.1515/jpm-2017-0057.Search in Google Scholar PubMed

7. Purandare, N, Minchella, P, Somayajulu, M, Kramer, KJ, Zhou, J, Adekoya, N, et al.. Molecular mechanisms regulating lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase 1 (LPCAT1) in human pregnancy. Placenta 2021;106:40–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.placenta.2021.02.005.Search in Google Scholar PubMed PubMed Central

Received: 2022-03-21

Accepted: 2022-08-23

Published Online: 2022-09-12

Published in Print: 2023-03-28

You are currently not able to access this content.

Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/jpm-2022-0150

Keywords for this article

fetal lung maturation; LPCAT1; maternal blood; steroid response; surfactant