OBJECTIVE
This study identified metabolite modules associated with adiposity and body fat distribution in childhood using gold-standard measurements.
METHODS
We used cross-sectional data from 329 children at mid-childhood (age 5.3 ± 0.3 years; BMI 15.7 ± 1.5 kg/m) from the Genetics of Glucose regulation in Gestation and Growth (Gen3G), a prospective pre-birth cohort. We quantified 1038 plasma metabolites and measured body composition using the gold-standard dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA), in addition to skinfold, waist circumference, and BMI. We applied weighted-correlation network analysis to identify a network of highly correlated metabolite modules. Spearman's partial correlations were applied to determine the associations of adiposity with metabolite modules and individual metabolites with false discovery rate (FDR) correction.
RESULTS
We identified a 'green' module of 120 metabolites, primarily comprised of lipids (mostly sphingomyelins and phosphatidylcholine), that showed positive correlations (all FDR p < 0.05) with DXA estimates of total and truncal fat (ρ = 0.11-0.19), skinfold measures (ρ = 0.09-0.26), and BMI and waist circumference (ρ = 0.15 and 0.18, respectively). These correlations were similar when stratified by sex. Within this module, sphingomyelin (d18:2/14:0, d18:1/14:1)*, a sphingomyelin sub-specie that is an important component of cell membranes, showed the strongest associations.
CONCLUSIONS
A module of metabolites was associated with adiposity measures in childhood.