Article
Obstetrics & Gynecology
Brian J. Koos, Jeffrey A. Gornbein
Summary: This metabolomics study identified a high-accuracy model for predicting gestational diabetes mellitus in early pregnancy. The research showed that certain metabolites were independently associated with gestational diabetes mellitus and could be used as predictive markers. This finding contributes to future studies on early therapeutic interventions for gestational diabetes mellitus.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNECOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biology
Yuping Zhou, Baoxia Gu, Geraldine Brichant, Jay Prakash Singh, Huan Yang, Hao Chang, Yanding Zhao, Chao Cheng, Zhong-Wu Liu, Myles H. Alderman, Lingeng Lu, Xiaoyong Yang, Xiao-Bing Gao, Hugh S. Taylor
Summary: A study found that mice offspring exposed to estriol (E-3) during pregnancy had increased fertility and better pregnancy outcomes. These offspring also showed decreased anxiety and increased exploratory behavior. E-3 acts on estrogen receptors, recruiting epigenetic modifiers to alter gene expression and affect organ development and brain function.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Susana P. Pereira, Mariana S. Diniz, Ludgero C. Tavares, Teresa Cunha-Oliveira, Cun Li, Laura A. Cox, Mark J. Nijland, Peter W. Nathanielsz, Paulo J. Oliveira
Summary: This study investigates the detectability of in utero fetal cardiac mitochondrial programming in early-stage IUGR pregnancy using a nonhuman primate model. The results show that early fetal responses to IUGR can be detected and that in utero cardiac mitochondrial adaptations are already present at this early stage. These adaptations affect the expression of oxidative phosphorylation subunits and may play a role in offspring's mitochondrial dysfunction and increased predisposition to cardiovascular disease.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Carl R. Dahlen, Pawel P. Borowicz, Alison K. Ward, Joel S. Caton, Marta Czernik, Luca Palazzese, Pasqualino Loi, Lawrence P. Reynolds
Summary: Assisted reproductive techniques (ART) and parental nutritional status have significant impacts on embryonic and fetal development, potentially mediated through programming of gene expression. Epigenetic changes may lead to long-term alterations in organ structure and function in offspring after birth.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Nutrition & Dietetics
Yu Qi Lee, Eugenie R. Lumbers, Tracy L. Schumacher, Clare E. Collins, Kym M. Rae, Kirsty G. Pringle
Summary: Suboptimal nutrition during pregnancy is recognized as a significant modifiable factor in the development of chronic diseases in offspring. The study found that dietary intake of pregnant Indigenous Australian women did not meet national guidelines and that maternal nutrition during pregnancy can impact fetal growth but not fetal kidney growth. Urgent strategies are needed to support and optimize nutrient intake in Indigenous pregnant women.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Caitlyn E. Bowman, Zoltan Arany, Michael J. Wolfgang
Summary: Pregnancy is a nutritionally sensitive stage, and communication between mother and fetus through metabolites is crucial. Studies on humans and animals provide insights into the metabolic adaptations of the fetus, placenta, and mother during pregnancy. Understanding the dynamic nature of maternal-fetal metabolic communication may lead to the discovery of new biomarkers and therapeutic targets for metabolic disorders in pregnancy.
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR LIFE SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Nutrition & Dietetics
Cynthia Barrera, Valeska Castillo, Rodrigo Valenzuela, Carina A. Valenzuela, Diego F. Garcia-Diaz, Miguel Llanos
Summary: This study aimed to determine the effects of a nutritional intervention during pregnancy and lactation on metabolic alterations of obese female progenitors' offspring and on the involvement of the endocannabinoid system (ECS). The results showed that the intervention normalized some hormonal parameters and hepatic mRNA levels of ECS components, improving the condition of the obese offspring.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Marina Horvaticek, Maja Peric, Ivona Beceheli, Marija Klasic, Maja Zutic, Maja Kesic, Gernot Desoye, Sandra Nakic Rados, Marina Ivanisevic, Dubravka Hranilovic, Jasminka Stefulj
Summary: This study demonstrates that maternal metabolic status affects the methylation level of HTR2A in the placenta. Maternal obesity and gestational diabetes mellitus are associated with reduced HTR2A promoter methylation in female placentas, while tobacco use during pregnancy is associated with reduced HTR2A promoter methylation in male placentas. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the early developmental origins of neurobehavioral and metabolic disorders associated with altered HTR2A function.
Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Alfonso D. Silva-Ochoa, Erick Velastegui, Isaac B. Falconi, Valeria I. Garcia-Solorzano, Angie Rendon-Riofrio, Gabriela A. Sanguna-Soliz, Wim Vanden Berghe, Andrea Orellana-Manzano
Summary: This article reviews important studies linking epigenetics with metabolic syndrome and discusses the significance of metabolic syndrome based on statistical data from developing countries.
Review
Cell Biology
Omar Ramos-Lopez, Fermin I. Milagro, Jose I. Riezu-Boj, J. Alfredo Martinez
Summary: This review highlights the harmful effects of external factors like high-fat/high-sugar diets, micronutrient deficiencies, obesity, infections, smoking, etc., on inflammation through epigenetic mechanisms, while also discussing the potential anti-inflammatory effects of nutrients and exercise.
INFLAMMATION RESEARCH
(2021)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Kuo-Shu Tang, Chun-Yi Ho, Chien-Ning Hsu, You-Lin Tain
Summary: Melatonin, a hormone released by the pineal gland at night, has various functions and plays a crucial role in kidney health and disease. As the prevalence of chronic kidney disease continues to rise, it is important to find a strategy to not only treat but also prevent it. This review examines the effect of melatonin on kidney development, its clinical uses in early life, preventive applications in animal models, and considerations for melatonin supplementation.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
M. H. Vickers
Summary: Changes in early life nutrition can have significant effects on the risk of obesity and metabolic disorders in later life, which can be passed on to future generations. This process, known as developmental programming, plays a role in the origins of health and disease. Early nutritional compromise can lead to adverse health outcomes in offspring, with the potential for exacerbation by a poor postnatal nutrition environment. The mechanisms underlying programming are not yet fully understood, but altered neuroendocrine circuits that regulate satiety and energy balance have been identified as a common feature in preclinical models.
Review
Neurosciences
Gabriela Cruz-Carrillo, Alberto Camacho-Morales
Summary: Central innate immunity plays a crucial role in neurodevelopment by integrating external signals through microglia; defects in immunity during embryonic development could lead to abnormal neural connections and psychiatric disorders in later stages.
MOLECULAR NEUROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Dan Chen, Ying-ying Wang, Sheng-peng Li, Hui-min Zhao, Feng-juan Jiang, Ya-xian Wu, Ying Tong, Qing-feng Pang
Summary: Maternal propionate supplementation can prevent glucose and lipid metabolic disturbance in IUGR, increase birth weight, improve liver function and energy expenditure.
Review
Nutrition & Dietetics
Izabela Michonska, Edyta Luszczki, Magdalena Zielinska, Lukasz Oleksy, Artur Stolarczyk, Katarzyna Deren
Summary: Childhood obesity and associated diseases are major problems in modern medicine and public health. The impact of these issues extends beyond the present and immediate future, affecting long-term adult health. Nutritional programming theory explores how a child's birth weight, influenced by maternal feeding behavior, relates to diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, dyslipidemia, and hypertension. This narrative review provides an overview of the history, theory, and prenatal mechanisms of nutritional programming in relation to childhood obesity and other metabolic diseases.