Dr Nicole Kellow awarded NHMRC Early Career Research Fellowship to investigate the relationship between nutrition and reproductive health

Being awarded an NHMRC Early Career Research Fellowship (ECRF) is the research worlds equivalent of finding the proverbial needle in a haystack. The odds of attaining an ECRF are even lower for first time applicants, clinical researchers and female scientists. While the statistics are improving, in 2018, only 19% of applicants were women, with 21% of these applicants being awarded an ECRF [1]. Cue Monash Nutrition researcher Dr Nicole Kellow, who has recently been awarded an ECRF: she is a first time applicant and a clinical researcher, breaking right through the glass ceiling having completed her PhD only 1 year ago.  This much deserved achievement recognises Nicole’s exceptional academic track record and the importance of her research.

Nicole’s excitement was palpable when she realised she had received the ECRF. “When I first received the email informing me that my application was successful, I had to ask a couple of my colleagues to read it because I couldn't believe it, and I thought it might be SPAM! After I was certain that it wasn't SPAM, I was very excited and it was wonderful to share the news with my fantastic colleagues in the department who were keen to have a celebratory glass of champagne!.” Researchers live and die by funding, meaning that a lot of research undertaken in Australia cannot be completed due to a lack of funding, or funding running out. Nicole explained that she also felt relieved,  “my contract is due to expire next year, and this grant will allow me to continue my research for the next 4 years”.

Nicole and her team are working to better understand the relationship between nutrition and reproductive health by exploring how dietary Advanced Glycation End-products (AGEs) affect reproductive dysfunction in women with obesity. AGEs are formed in the body when sugars attach to proteins, which occurs by a process known as the Maillard reaction. This reaction also occurs in foods that are heated at high temperatures (eg. grilling, frying, toasting), potentially introducing large quantities of AGEs into our bodies when we consume these foods.

Women with a BMI greater than 27 kg/m² have a three times greater risk of infertility due to infrequent ovulation [2]. Even in obese women who continue to ovulate, each unit of BMI above 29 kg/m² reduces the chance of achieving a pregnancy within 12 months by 4 % [3]. In women undergoing IVF treatment, the chance of achieving a live birth with IVF is reduced by 9 % in overweight women and by 20% in obese women [4]. Obesity is also an independent risk factor for miscarriage and early pregnancy loss [5]. In men, carrying an extra 10 kg reduces male fertility by 10 % [6].

Women with obesity have a greater accumulation of AGEs in their uterine tissue than those within the healthy weight range [7]. In these women, AGE’s cause inflammation in the endometrium, reducing the likelihood of successful embryo implantation [6]. Excessive AGEs can also adversely affect sperm quality by reducing the DNA integrity of sperm [8].

Nicole and the research team hope to determine whether a brief low-AGE dietary intervention in obese couples can reduce uterine and sperm AGE concentrations to improve fertility outcomes. If successful, this simple and low-cost dietary strategy may reduce the need for assisted reproductive technologies such as IVF.

Currently there is a lot of confusion surrounding the AGE content of the diet and how dietary AGE intake should be assessed. A key component of the team’s research will focus on the development and validation of a ‘Dietary AGE Food Frequency Questionnaire’, which will assist future food AGE-related research.

More information

This research is being conducted in conjunction with Dr Jemma Evans (Hudson Research Institute), Professor David Gardner (Melbourne IVF), Professor Beverley Vollenhoven (Monash IVF), Associate Professor Melinda Coughlan (Monash Department of Diabetes) and Professor Helen Truby (Monash Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food).

The research team aim to commence recruiting women and their partners who are overweight/obese who are struggling to become pregnant in early 2019.

Dr Nicole Kellow is a lecturer and researcher within the Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food at Monash University. The focus of her research is dietary and lifestyle interventions to improve metabolic health and fertility.

You can follow Nicole on Twitter via @NicoleKellow.

References:

1. NHMRC. Outcomes of funding rounds: Results of NHMRC Grant Application Rounds (2018 Application round) [Internet]. 2018. [cited 22 October 2018]. Available from: https://nhmrc.gov.au/funding/data-research/outcomes-funding-rounds

2. Grodstein F, Goldman MB, Cramer DW. Body mass index and ovulatory infertility. Epidemiology (Cambridge, Mass). 1994;5(2):247-50.

3. Van der Steeg JW, Steures P, Eijkemans MJ, Habbema JD, Hompes PG, Burggraaff JM, et al. Obesity affects spontaneous pregnancy chances in subfertile, ovulatory women. Human reproduction (Oxford, England). 2008;23(2):324-8.

4. Rittenberg V, Seshadri S, Sunkara SK, Sobaleva S, Oteng-Ntim E, El-Toukhy T. Effect of body mass index on IVF treatment outcome: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis. Reproductive biomedicine online. 2011;23(4):421-39.

5. Wise LA, Rothman KJ, Mikkelsen EM, Sorensen HT, Riis A, Hatch EE. An internet-based prospective study of body size and time-to-pregnancy. Human reproduction (Oxford, England). 2010;25(1):253-64.

6. Sim I, McLachlan R. Obesity - a growing issue for male fertility. Medicine Today. 2014;15(1):49-53.

7. Antoniotti GS, Coughlan M, Salamonsen LA, Evans J. Obesity associated advanced glycation end products within the human uterine cavity adversely impact endometrial function and embryo implantation competence. Human reproduction (Oxford, England). 2018;33(4):654-65.

8.Nevin C, McNeil L, Ahmed N, Murgatroyd C, Brison D, Carroll M. Investigating the Glycating Effects of Glucose, Glyoxal and Methylglyoxal on Human Sperm. Scientific reports. 2018;8(1):9002.