Ranjitkar Suman, Kvestad Ingrid, Chandyo Ram K, Strand Tor A, Bakken Kjersti S, Ulak Manjeswori, Huber Sandra, Averina Maria, Shrestha Merina, Hysing Mari
Department of Psychosocial Science, Faculty of Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway; Department of Pediatrics, Child Health Research Project, Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Department of Research, Innlandet Hospital Trust, Lillehammer, Norway.
J Nutr. 2025 Jun;155(6):1962-1969. doi: 10.1016/j.tjnut.2025.04.005. Epub 2025 Apr 11.
Selenium (Se) is a micronutrient essential for human health and the developing brain. A few studies have demonstrated associations between maternal Se concentration and child neurodevelopment.
We aimed to describe Se status in pregnant Nepalese females and explore the association between maternal Se plasma concentration in early pregnancy and child neurodevelopment measured during early childhood in Nepalese children.
The cohort study included 800 mother-infant dyads from Bhaktapur, Nepal. Blood samples from pregnant females were drawn within 15 wk of gestation and Se concentration was analyzed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Child neurodevelopment was assessed at 6, 12, and 24 mo with the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, 3rd edition (Bayley-3). We used linear mixed models to examine the association between maternal plasma Se concentration and Bayley-3 scores, adjusted for maternal age and socioeconomic status.
The mean (standard deviation) maternal plasma Se concentration was 74.8 μg/L (10.4 μg/L), and 290 (36.3%) pregnant females had Se concentration indicating deficiency (<71.1 μg/L). We found no significant association between maternal Se concentration and the Bayley-3 total z-score [Coeff. 0.002 (95% confidence interval: -0.007, 0.011)], and no associations between Se concentration and any of the Bayley-3 composite and subscale scores.
Despite a substantial proportion of pregnant females with Se deficiency, maternal Se concentration was not associated with early childhood neurodevelopment in our study cohort of healthy pregnant Nepalese females.
硒（Se）是人体健康和大脑发育所必需的一种微量营养素。一些研究已证明母体硒浓度与儿童神经发育之间存在关联。
我们旨在描述尼泊尔孕妇的硒状况，并探讨孕早期母体血浆硒浓度与尼泊尔儿童幼儿期所测儿童神经发育之间的关联。
该队列研究纳入了来自尼泊尔巴克塔普尔的800对母婴。在妊娠15周内采集孕妇的血样，并通过电感耦合等离子体质谱法分析硒浓度。使用贝利婴幼儿发展量表第三版（Bayley - 3）在6、12和24月龄时评估儿童神经发育。我们使用线性混合模型来检验母体血浆硒浓度与Bayley - 3评分之间的关联，并对母体年龄和社会经济状况进行了调整。
母体血浆硒浓度的均值（标准差）为74.8μg/L（10.4μg/L），290名（36.3%）孕妇的硒浓度表明缺乏（<71.1μg/L）。我们发现母体硒浓度与Bayley - 3总z评分之间无显著关联[系数0.002（95%置信区间：-0.007，0.011）]，并且硒浓度与Bayley - 3任何综合及分量表评分之间均无关联。
尽管有相当比例的孕妇存在硒缺乏，但在我们这个健康尼泊尔孕妇研究队列中，母体硒浓度与幼儿期神经发育并无关联。
