Research Article Influence of Maternal Infection and Pregnancy Complications on Cord Blood Telomere Length Keith T. S. Tung , 1 Catherine M. W. Hung , 2 Ko Ling Chan , 3 Rosa S. Wong , 1 Hing Wai Tsang , 1 Wilfred H. S. Wong , 1 Camilla K. M. Lo , 3 Winnie W. Y. Tso , 1 Gilbert T. Chua , 1 Benjamin K. Yee , 4 Ian C. K. Wong , 5,6 W. C. Leung , 2 and Patrick Ip 1 1 Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China 2 Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Kwong Wah Hospital, Hong Kong SAR, China 3 Department of Applied Social Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR, China 4 Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR, China 5 Centre for Safe Medication Practice and Research, Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China 6 Research Department of Practice and Policy, UCL School of Pharmacy, University College London, UK Correspondence should be addressed to Patrick Ip; patricip@hku.hk Received 30 May 2021; Accepted 31 August 2021; Published 26 September 2021 Academic Editor: Ilaria Peluso Copyright © 2021 Keith T. S. Tung et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Background. Exposure to suboptimal intrauterine environment might induce structural and functional changes that can affect neonatal health. Telomere length as an important indicator of cellular health has been associated with increased risk for disease development. Objectives. This study was aimed to examine the independent and combined effects of maternal, obstetric, and foetal factors on cord blood telomere length (TL). Methods. Pregnant women at the gestational age of 20 th to 24 th week who attended the antenatal clinic of a major local hospital in Hong Kong were recruited. Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire on demographics, health-related quality of life, and history of risk behaviors. Medical history including pregnancy complications and neonatal outcomes was obtained from electronic medical records of both mother and neonate. Umbilical cord blood was collected at delivery for TL determination. Results. A total of 753 pregnant women (average age: 32:18 ± 4:51 years) were recruited. The prevalence of maternal infection, anaemia, and hypertension during pregnancy was 30.8%, 30.0%, and 6.0%, respectively. The adjusted regression model displayed that maternal infection was negatively associated with cord blood TL (β = -0:18, p =0:026). This association became even stronger in the presence of antenatal anaemia, hypertension, delivery complications, or neonatal jaundice (β = -0:25 to -0.45). Conclusions. This study consolidates evidence on the impact of adverse intrauterine environment at the cellular level. Maternal infection was significantly associated with shorter cord blood TL in a unique manner such that its presence may critically determine the susceptibility of telomere to other factors. 1. Introduction Emerging evidence from epidemiological, clinical, and experimental studies suggests that early adverse experiences may cause long-term health problems and increase suscepti- bility to disease [1, 2]. Particularly, it has been suggested that the developmental origins of health and disease can be traced back to the intrauterine life. As developing foetuses are very sensitive to the quality of intrauterine environment, adverse exposures during this period of rapid cell replication and differentiation might cause permanent structural and functional impairments [3] which may increase the risk for Hindawi Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity Volume 2021, Article ID 3339456, 9 pages https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/3339456