Intrauterine selenium exposure linked to newborn telomere length

For the first time, an association has been observed between maternal urinary selenium and newborn telomere length, which suggests that intrauterine exposure to selenium may influence the initial setting of human telomere length, according to a study.

“This is the first study to provide evidence for the effect of maternal selenium levels on foetal telomere erosion,” the authors said.

A total of 746 mother‒newborn pairs in Wuhan Children’s Hospital were recruited between 2013 and 2015. The authors repeatedly collected urine samples at three time points during pregnancy, as well as umbilical cord blood samples right after parturition.

Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was used to detect urinary selenium concentration, and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction to measure newborn telomere length. General estimating equations were applied to examine the trimester-specific association between maternal urinary selenium during pregnancy and newborn telomere length.

The median concentrations of creatinine-corrected selenium during pregnancy were 16.29, 18.08, and 18.35 μg/g·creatinine in the first, second, and third trimesters, respectively. Selenium concentrations in all trimesters significantly correlated with newborn telomere length.

After adjusting for potential confounders, per doubling of maternal urinary selenium concentrations correlated with 6.44-percent (95 percent confidence interval [CI], 0.92‒12.25) longer newborn telomere length in the first trimester, 6.54-percent (95 percent CI, 0.17‒13.31) longer in the second trimester, and 6.02-percent (95 percent CI, 0.29‒12.09) longer in the third trimester.

“Newborn telomere length is considered as an effective predictor of lifespan and health outcomes in later life,” the authors said. “Selenium is an essential trace element for human health, and its antioxidation is of great significance for the prevention of telomere erosion.”