Prenatal glucocorticoid overexposure has been shown to programme adult cardiovascular function in a range of species, but much less is known about the long-term effects of neonatal glucocorticoid overexposure. In horses, prenatal maturation of the hypothalamus–pituitary–adrenal axis and the normal prepartum surge in fetal cortisol occur late in gestation compared to other precocious species. Cortisol levels continue to rise in the hours after birth of full-term foals and increase further in the subsequent days in premature, dysmature and maladapted foals. Thus, this study examined the adult cardiovascular consequences of neonatal cortisol overexposure induced by adrenocorticotropic hormone administration to full-term male and female pony foals. After catheterisation at 2–3 years of age, basal arterial blood pressures (BP) and heart rate were measured together with the responses to phenylephrine (PE) and sodium nitroprusside (SNP). These data were used to assess cardiac baroreflex sensitivity. Neonatal cortisol overexposure reduced both the pressor and bradycardic responses to PE in the young adult males, but not females. It also enhanced the initial hypotensive response to SNP, slowed recovery of BP after infusion and reduced the gain of the cardiac baroreflex in the females, but not males. Basal diastolic pressure and cardiac baroreflex sensitivity also differed with sex, irrespective of neonatal treatment. The results show that there is a window of susceptibility for glucocorticoid programming during the immediate neonatal period that alters cardiovascular function in young adult horses in a sex-linked manner.

Maternal diet during pregnancy has been associated with obesity among offspring. The extent to which trimester-specific dietary patterns are associated with markers of adiposity during adolescence remains unclear. We examined associations between prenatal diet patterns with adolescent offspring measures of adiposity and adipokines in 384 mother–adolescent dyads from the Mexico City ELEMENT cohort. Trimester-specific diet patterns were derived from principal component analysis of food frequency questionnaire data. Adolescent anthropometry and serum leptin and adiponectin were measured at 10–17 years. Three maternal diet patterns were identified: Prudent Diet (PD), high in fish and vegetables, the High Meat and Fat Diet (HMFD), high in pork and processed meats, and the Transitioning Mexican Diet (TMD), high in corn tortillas and sugar-sweetened beverages. Multiple linear regression was used to estimate sex-stratified associations among quartiles of diet patterns with adiposity and adipokines, adjusting for maternal marital status, education, and parity. First trimester TMD was associated with greater anthropometric measures and higher leptin in females, while third trimester HMFD was associated higher body fat percentage, triceps thickness, waist circumference, and leptin, but lower adiponectin among males. Contrary to expectation, there were positive associations between the trimester 1 PD pattern and anthropometric measurements in females, and for trimester 2 HMFD and TMD patterns with adipokines among males. Findings suggest maternal diet patterns may influence offspring adiposity markers during adolescence in a sex-specific manner.

Sleep shortening during pregnancy may alter the mother’s environment, affecting the offspring. Thus, the present study evaluated the metabolic profile of female offspring from sleep-restricted rats during the last week of pregnancy. Pregnant Wistar rats were distributed into two groups: control (C) and sleep restriction (SR). The SR was performed 20 h/day, from 14th to 20th day of pregnancy. At 2 months, half of the offspring were subjected to ovariectomy (OVX); the others, to sham surgery. Studied groups were Csham, Covx, SRsham and SRovx. Cholesterol (HDL, LDL and C-total), triglycerides (TG) and glucose and insulin tolerance tests (GTT–ITT) were evaluated at 8 months. RSsham presented higher values of TG, while SRovx presented higher TG, LDL and C-total. Basal glucose concentration was increased in SRsham and SRovx. These data suggest that SR during pregnancy may be a risk factor for the development of diseases in adult female offspring.

Maternal obesity and malnutrition during gestation and lactation have been recognized to increase the risk of obesity and metabolic disorders in the offspring across their lifespan. However, the gestational period during which malnutrition exerts a decisive effect is unclear. Brown adipose tissue (BAT) plays a critical role in energy metabolism owing to its high efficiency in oxidizing glucose and fatty acids. This study aimed to determine the impact of maternal high-fat diet (HFD) consumption only during pregnancy on BAT and energy metabolism in offspring mice. Dams were fed an HFD or a normal chow diet from embryonic day 2.5. HFD consumption during pregnancy induced glucose intolerance and hypertension in dams. In the offspring of HFD-fed dams, maternal HFD lowered fetal weight without affecting placental weight, whereas HFD consumption after birth exacerbated oxygen consumption and cold-induced thermogenesis at 12 months of age, accompanied by increased lipid droplet size in BAT. These data demonstrate that HFD consumption only during pregnancy exerts a long-lasting effect on BAT. Collectively, these findings indicate the importance of nutrition during pregnancy with respect to the energy metabolism of the offspring, and pregnant women should thus ensure proper nutrition during pregnancy to ensure normal energy metabolism in the offspring.

Early life stress (ELS) and a Western diet (WD) promote mood and cardiovascular disorders, however, how these risks interact in disease pathogenesis is unclear. We assessed effects of ELS with or without a subsequent WD on behaviour, cardiometabolic risk factors, and cardiac function/ischaemic tolerance in male mice. Fifty-six new-born male C57BL/6J mice were randomly allocated to a control group (CON) undisturbed before weaning, or to maternal separation (3h/day) and early (postnatal day 17) weaning (MSEW). Mice consumed standard rodent chow (CON, n = 14; MSEW, n = 15) or WD chow (WD, n = 19; MSEW + WD, n = 19) from week 8 to 24. Fasted blood was sampled and open field test and elevated plus maze (EPM) tests undertaken at 7, 15, and 23 weeks of age, with hearts excised at 24 weeks for Langendorff perfusion (evaluating pre- and post-ischaemic function). MSEW alone transiently increased open field activity at 7 weeks; body weight and serum triglycerides at 4 and 7 weeks, respectively; and final blood glucose levels and insulin resistance at 23 weeks. WD increased insulin resistance and body weight gain, the latter potentiated by MSEW. MSEW + WD was anxiogenic, reducing EPM open arm activity vs. WD alone. Although MSEW had modest metabolic effects and did not influence cardiac function or ischaemic tolerance in lean mice, it exacerbated weight gain and anxiogenesis, and improved ischaemic tolerance in WD fed animals. MSEW-induced increases in body weight (obesity) in WD fed animals in the absence of changes in insulin resistance may have protected the hearts of these mice.

The evolution of birth weight (BW), birth length (BL), and gestational age at delivery (GAD) and their correlation with various maternal sociodemographic variables were studied in Chilean newborns from years 1996 to 2017. A slight decrease in the mean values of these perinatal outcomes was observed; however, their risk sub-categories increased significantly, especially for GAD, indicating an important deterioration. GAD was strongly correlated with BW and BL. In the contingency tables, all sociodemographic variables, with the exemption of sex, had a higher proportion of early term 37–38-week and late pre-term 34–36-week newborns in women with a higher socioeconomic level; the strongest positive association was observed between mother’s years of education and the GAD risk category 37–38 weeks. Different maternal factors, such as a higher frequency of cesarean sections, including either obesity presence or smoking habit, could be influencing presented results.

This study aimed to investigate the association between maternal birth weight (MBW) with preterm delivery (PTD) in the Japanese population. To this end, a total of 78,972 Japanese pregnant women were included in a prospective birth cohort study. Multiple logistic regression and multinominal logistic regression models were applied to investigate the associations of MBW with PTD (delivery from 22 to < 37 weeks of gestation), early PTD (delivery from 22 to < 34 weeks), and late PTD (delivery from 34 to < 37 weeks). The results showed that MBW was inversely associated with PTD, early PTD, and late PTD (p-for-trend < 0.0001, 0.0014, and < 0.0001, respectively). The adjusted odds ratios per each 500 g of MBW decrease were 1.167 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.118–1.218) for PTD, 1.174 (95% CI: 1.070–1.287) for early PTD and 1.151 (95% CI: 1.098–1.206) for late PTD. The effect size of the association of MBW with early PTD was similar to that with late PTD. This study demonstrated for the first time an association of a low MBW with PTD, early PTD, and late PTD in a Japanese nationwide cohort.

Maternal periconceptional undernutrition (PCUN) affected fetal pancreatic maturation in late gestation lambs and impaired glucose tolerance in 10-month-old sheep. To examine the importance of the timing of maternal undernutrition around conception, a further cohort was born to PCUN ewes [undernourished for 61 d before conception (PreC), 30 d after conception (PostC), or 61 d before until 30 d after conception (PrePostC)], or normally fed ewes (Control) (n = 15–20/group). We compared glucose tolerance, insulin secretion, and sensitivity at 36 months of age. We also examined protein expression of insulin signalling proteins in muscle from these animals and in muscle from a fetal cohort (132 d of gestation; n = 7–10/group). Adult PostC and PrePostC sheep had higher glucose area under the curve than Controls (P = 0.07 and P = 0.02, respectively), whereas PreC sheep were similar to Controls (P = 0.97). PostC and PrePostC had reduced first-phase insulin secretion compared with Control (P = 0.03 and P = 0.02, respectively). PreC was similar to Control (P = 0.12). Skeletal muscle SLC2A4 protein expression in PostC and PrePostC was increased 19%–58% in fetuses (P = 0.004), but decreased 39%–43% in adult sheep (P = 0.003) compared with Controls. Consistent with this, protein kinase C zeta (PKCζ) protein expression tended to be increased in fetal (P = 0.09) and reduced in adult (P = 0.07) offspring of all PCUN ewes compared with Controls. Maternal PCUN alters several aspects of offspring glucose homeostasis into adulthood. These findings suggest that maternal periconceptional nutrition has a lasting impact on metabolic homeostasis of the offspring.

One of the longstanding debates in life-course epidemiology is whether an adverse intrauterine environment, often proxied by birth weight, causally increases the future risk of cardiometabolic disease. The use of a discordant twin study design, which controls for the influence of shared genetic and environmental confounding factors, may be useful to investigate whether this relationship is causal. We conducted a discordant twin study of 120 monozygotic (MZ) and 148 dizygotic (DZ) twin pairs from the UK Biobank to explore the potential causal relationships between birth weight and a broad spectrum of later-life cardiometabolic risk factors. We used a linear mixed model to investigate the association between birth weight and later-life cardiometabolic risk factors for twins, allowing for both within-pair differences and between-pair differences in birth weight. Of primary interest is the within-pair association between differences in birth weight and cardiometabolic risk factors, which could reflect an intrauterine effect on later-life risk factors. We found no strong evidence of association in MZ twins between the within-pair differences in birth weight and most cardiometabolic risk factors in later life, except for nominal associations with C-reactive protein and insulin-like growth factor 1. However, these associations were not replicated in DZ twin pairs. Our study provided no strong evidence for intrauterine effects on later-life cardiometabolic risk factors, which is consistent with previous large-scale studies of singletons testing the potential causal relationship. It does not support the hypothesis that adverse intrauterine environments increase the risk of cardiometabolic disease in later life.

Animal and human data demonstrate independent relationships between fetal growth, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis function (HPA-A) and adult cardiometabolic outcomes. While the association between fetal growth and adult cardiometabolic outcomes is well-established, the role of the HPA-A in these relationships is unclear. This study aims to determine whether HPA-A function mediates or moderates this relationship. Approximately 2900 pregnant women were recruited between 1989-1991 in the Raine Study. Detailed anthropometric data was collected at birth (per cent optimal birthweight [POBW]). The Trier Social Stress Test was administered to the offspring (Generation 2; Gen2) at 18 years; HPA-A responses were determined (reactive responders [RR], anticipatory responders [AR] and non-responders [NR]). Cardiometabolic parameters (BMI, systolic BP [sBP] and LDL cholesterol) were measured at 20 years. Regression modelling demonstrated linear associations between POBW and BMI and sBP; quadratic associations were observed for LDL cholesterol. For every 10% increase in POBW, there was a 0.54 unit increase in BMI (standard error [SE] 0.15) and a 0.65 unit decrease in sBP (SE 0.34). The interaction between participant’s fetal growth and HPA-A phenotype was strongest for sBP in young adulthood. Interactions for BMI and LDL-C were non-significant. Decomposition of the total effect revealed no causal evidence of mediation or moderation.

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether high-fat (HF) diet intake during puberty can program obesity as well as generate glucose imbalance and hepatic metabolic dysfunctions in adult life. Male Wistar rats were randomly assigned into two groups: rats fed standard chow (NF) and rats fed a HF from postnatal 30-day-old (PND30) until PND60. Then, both groups were fed a standard chow from PND60 until PND120. Euthanasia and samples collections occurred at PND120. HF animals were overweight (+11%) and had increased adiposity, hyperphagia (+12%), hyperglycaemia (+13%), hyperinsulinemia (+69%), and hypertriglyceridemia (+34%). Plasma glucose levels during intravenous glucose tolerance test (ivGTT) and intraperitoneal insulin tolerance test (ipITT) were also higher in the HF group, whereas Kitt was significantly lower (–34%), suggesting reduced insulin sensitivity. In the same sense, HF animals present pancreatic islets hypertrophy and high β-cell mass. HF animals also had a significant increase in blood glucose levels during pyruvate tolerance test, indicating increased gluconeogenesis. Hepatic morphology analyses showed an increase in lipid inclusion in the HF group. Moreover, PEPCK and FAS protein expression were higher in the livers of the HF animals (+79% and + 37%, respectively). In conclusion, HF during puberty causes obese phenotype leading to glucose dyshomeostasis and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, which can be related to the overexpression of proteins PEPCK and FAS.

People commonly face adverse circumstances throughout life, which increases risk for psychiatric disorders, such as anxiety, depression, psychosis, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Adversities may occur during different periods in life. Especially adversity during early periods has been suggested to put individuals at risk for adverse mental health outcomes. Here, we investigated whether timing of adversity during the prenatal period, childhood, or mid-to-late adulthood differentially impacted classification into late adulthood symptom profiles. We performed sex-stratified Latent Profile Analysis to identify latent profiles regarding anxious, depressive, psychotic, and PTSD symptoms in n = 568 Dutch famine birth cohort members (n = 294 women, n = 274 men, mean age(SD) = 72.9(0.8)). Cross-sectional late adulthood symptomatology, childhood traumatic maltreatment, and adulthood trauma were based on self-report questionnaires. Prenatal adversity was considered present when individuals were prenatally exposed to the 1944-45 Dutch famine. In both men and women we identified one anxious/depressive profile and three profiles with approximately equal severity of all symptom types within each profile, yet differentiating in overall severity (low, mild, high) between profiles. We additionally found a PTSD symptom profile in women. In men, logistic regression models showed significant associations between prenatal, childhood and adulthood adversity, and profile classification, with differential effects depending on timing and most profound effects of child maltreatment. In women, childhood and adulthood adversity significantly increased classification probability into almost all profiles, with no significant effect of prenatal adversity. These findings support a time-dependent and sex-specific impact of adversity during different periods across the lifespan on psychological health, with consequences into late adulthood.

Protein malnutrition during critical periods poses significant risks to reproductive health. Thus, this study aims to evaluate the immediate and delayed effects of a 30-day low-protein diet on the postnatal development of the male reproductive system. For so, male rats were fed a protein-deficient diet from postnatal day 30–60, followed by evaluations of testis, epididymis, and spermatozoa both at the end of the diet and after a 60-day recovery period. Testicular and epididymal weight was lowered in pubertal animals. Several histological alterations were found in the testis, such as acidophilic cells and vacuoles in the seminiferous epithelium, and sperm production was compromised. In the epididymis, the luminal compartment was diminished, and the stroma was enlarged both in the caput and cauda; in the cauda, the epithelial compartment was enlarged; the transit time of spermatozoa through this organ was diminished. Testosterone production was lowered. Spermatozoa’s motility, mitochondrial activation, and acrosomal integrity were impaired, and several alterations in morphology were observed. After the recovery period, testicular and epididymal weight was restored. Tissue remodulation was observed in the epididymis, but the spermatozoa’s transit time in this organ was not altered. Sperm and testosterone production, spermatozoa motility, mitochondrial activation, and acrosomal integrity were also restored. However, testicular histological alterations and spermatic morphological abnormalities were maintained in protein-restricted animals. Protein restriction during peripuberty impairs the reproductive maturation of pubertal Wistar rats, impairing testicular and epididymal function, with lasting effects even after dietary correction.

Early-life intervention to reduce obesity and poor dental health through early-life nutrition will improve health outcomes in later life. This study examined the prevalence of overweight and obesity and visual dental decay in 4-year old children in New Zealand between 2013 and 2017, and the impact of a nutrition and physical activity intervention programme, Under-5-Energize (U5E), on prevalence of these conditions within ethnic groups and by deprivation. The data set included 277,963 4-year-old children, including 25,140 from the Waikato region children of whom 8067 attended one of the 121 early childhood centres (ECC) receiving the U5E programme from 2014. Purposively the U5E-ECC selected were attended by higher proportions of indigenous Māori children and children living in higher deprivation areas than non-U5E-ECC. From 2013 to 2017, the overall prevalence of obesity, as defined by World Health Organisation criteria, declined slightly but rates of dental decay did not change. In the Waikato region, the prevalence of obesity declined in non-Māori children from 2015 to 2017 and children attending U5E-ECC had lower rates of dental decay than non-U5E children. Binary logistic regression showed that between 2015 and 2017 visible dental decay was more likely in children who were Māori (3.06×3.17), living in high deprivation (1.54×1.66) and male (1.10) but less likely if attending an U5E-ECC (0.83×0.79). Early-life intervention had efficacy at reducing dental decay, and demonstrated that the origins of disparities in health such as ethnicity and deprivation need to be addressed further to break the intergenerational cycles of poor health.

The theory of developmental programming is supported by accumulating evidence, both observational and experimental. The direct application of the principles of developmental programming by clinicians to benefit pregnant women remains an area of limited attention. Examining a selection of inpatients at an obstetric referral center, I searched for situations in which clinical decision making could be driven by the principles of developmental programming. I also looked for situations in which the clinical research agenda could be dictated by these concepts. In the decision to undertake preventive measures to avoid preeclampsia, the offspring’s perspective may support more liberal application of calcium and aspirin. Consideration of the long-term health perspective of the offspring could drive choices in the management of obesity and diabetes in pregnancy. The administration of corticosteroids in women delivering by elective cesarean at term may have modest short-term benefits, but additional trials are necessary to investigate long-term offspring health. The offspring of women suffering hyperemesis gravidarum may benefit from nutritional therapy. The long-term health of the offspring could affect couples’ choice for IVF or expectant management. Applying the principles of developmental programming to the management of pregnant women could drive clinical decision making and is driving the clinical research agenda. Increasingly, developmental programming concepts are becoming an integral part of clinical practice, as well as determining the choice of outcomes in trials in obstetrics and fertility medicine. The presented cases underscore the need for more research to guide clinical practice.