Abstract P243: Increased Adiposity And Leptinemia Amongst Women From The Southern Community Cohort Study (SCCS) Exposed To Adverse Childhood Experiences

Abstract

Exposure to a combination of more than 3 adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) is an independent risk factor for obesity and metabolic syndrome. Since women have a higher risk of developing obesity than men, this study was designed to investigate the effects of ACEs on BMI and adipokines while considering sex and menopausal status. We analyzed 41,226 ACE questionnaires (comprised of 10 questions) from the Southern Community Cohort Study (SCCS). Overall, BMI and plasma adipokines were similar between pre- and post-menopausal women, while men displayed lower BMI and plasma leptin compared with age-matched women (p<0.05). A multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to determine correlations between ACE and sex on the same set of variables. Then, we categorized the samples as low-ACE (0-3) or high-ACE (4 or more) to determine differences in BMI, leptin, and adiponectin. When the data was disaggregated, high-ACE was associated with increased BMI (Prob > F: 0.0183), elevated plasma leptin (Prob > F: 0.0046), and reduced plasma adiponectin (Prob > F:0123). BMI was increased in all high-ACE women, whereas leptin increased while adiponectin reduced in high-ACE pre-menopausal women only (table 1A). Age-matched men did not show a significant effect of ACE on BMI or adipokines (table 1B). Taken together, our data indicate that high-ACE exposure strongly predicts metabolic risk in women, particularly in pre-menopausal status. These outcomes become fundamental to support the use of our mouse model of neglect as a translational tool to address the sex-specific obesogenic response to stress.