The study found that pregnant women with gestational diabetes have lower levels of the naturally occurring peptide humanin in their blood. Lower humanin was linked to higher weight, body‑mass index, blood fats, blood sugar, insulin resistance, and the presence of diabetes, while higher humanin was linked to higher thyroid hormones. This suggests humanin might be a marker of metabolic health during pregnancy, but the research didn’t test any treatments.

Humanin (MT-RNR2) is an endogenous polypeptide that is involved in many diseases, including T2DM. Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is defined as hyperglycemia during pregnancy. The aim of this study was to evaluate serum humanin levels in women with or without GDM and to elucidate possible correlations with anthropometric parameters, metabolic parameters and the incidence of GDM. Eighty-four women with GDM and 73 control women were enrolled in this study. The clinical and biochemical parameters of all subjects were determined. Serum humanin levels were measured by an ELISA. Serum humanin levels were significantly lower in women with GDM than in control women. Moreover, humanin levels were significantly negatively correlated with the presence of GDM, body weight, BMI at 24 weeks of gestation, TG, FPG, 1 hPG, 2 hPG, FINS, and HOMA-IR. In contrast, humanin levels were significantly positively correlated with FT3 and FT4. A binary logistic analysis showed that humanin levels were associated with the incidence of GDM. Additional follow-up studies are needed to highlight whether and how decreased humanin levels play an important role in GDM.