Leptin gene polymorphism (rs7799039; G2548A) is associated with changes in serum lipid concentrations during pregnancy: a prospective cohort study.

Purpose: Little is known about the effects of leptin and leptin receptor polymorphisms on lipid changes during pregnancy. The aims of this study were to evaluate the associations between the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of leptin and leptin receptor genes and the lipid concentrations during pregnancy; and to test whether dietary intake is a mediator in these associations.

Methods: A prospective cohort of 154 pregnant women was followed up in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil during the following gestational periods: 5-13th, 20-26th and 30-36th weeks.

Polymorphisms in the leptin (rs7799039) gene are associated with an increased risk of excessive gestational weight gain but not with leptin concentration during pregnancy.

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in leptin (LEP) and leptin receptor (LEPR) have been shown to be linked to obesity-related metabolic markers and phenotype. Therefore, we hypothesized that the LEP-rs7799039 and LEPR-rs1137101 SNPs are related to the risk of pre-pregnancy overweight/obesity (body mass index ≥25 kg/m) as well as to excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) and high concentrations of leptin throughout pregnancy. We investigated a prospective cohort of 147 Brazilian pregnant women through weeks 5-13, 20-26, and 30-36 of gestation.

Association of the FTO (rs9939609) and MC4R (rs17782313) gene polymorphisms with maternal body weight during pregnancy.

Objective: The fat mass and obesity (FTO) and melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) genes have been consistently associated with the risk for obesity, but few studies have examined the association of the obesity risk alleles with gestational outcomes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the FTO (rs9939609) and MC4R (rs17782313) genes with changes in maternal body weight during pregnancy.

Methods: A sample of 136 pregnant women were followed in a prospective cohort at 5 to 13, 20 to 26, and 30 to 36 wk gestation and 30 to 45 d postpartum.

[Evaluation of public policies to promote food security and the fight against hunger, 1995-2002. 3--the Brazilian National Program to Control Vitamin A Deficiency].

Vitamin A supplements have been distributed during National Immunization Days since 1983, and Brazil has been a pioneer in this kind of strategy. The current study evaluated the National Program from 1995 to 2002, from a structure-process-results perspective. The methodology involved document research, interviews with health services managers, and a case study in 44 municipalities in Bahia State, resulting in 1,344 household interviews.

[Evaluation of Brazilian public policies to promote food security and fight hunger, 1995-2002. 2 - the Workers' Nutrition Program].

This study evaluated the Workers' Nutrition Program in Brazil from 1995 to 2002, from a structure-process-results perspective. The methodology involved documental research and a case study in 45 municipalities in the State of Bahia, resulting in 2,389 household interviews. In relation to structure, we analyzed the program's normative evolution until 2002.

[Prevalence of hypovitaminosis A among preschool children from northeastern Brazil, 1998].

Objective: To determine the prevalence of vitamin A deficiency in a population-based sample.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in the State of Sergipe, northeastern Brazil, in May and June, 1998. It involved 607 children aged 6 to 60 months.