LOW MITOCHONDRIAL GLYCEROPHOSPHATE DEHYDROGENASE-ACTIVITY IN LYMPHOCYTES OF WOMEN WITH GESTATIONAL DIABETES

An abnormally low activity of mitochondrial FAD-linked glycerophosphat e dehydrogenase (m-GDH), relative to the paired measurement of glutama te dehydrogenase, was found in CD3+ lymphocytes from 4 out of 14 mothe rs with gestational diabetes mellitus, but in none of 36 control mothe rs. The low m-GDH activity coincided with an abnormally high incidence of familial history for non-insulin-dependent diabetes. These finding s are compatible with the view that an inherited or acquired defect of m-GDH may participate to the pathogenesis of beta-cell dysfunction in a subgroup of patients with gestational diabetes.