Recent Experimental Studies of Maternal Obesity, Diabetes during Pregnancy and the Developmental Origins of Cardiovascular Disease.
Stephanie M KereliukVernon W DolinskyPublished in: International journal of molecular sciences (2022)
Globally, cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death. Most concerning is the rise in cardiovascular risk factors including obesity, diabetes and hypertension among youth, which increases the likelihood of the development of earlier and more severe cardiovascular disease. While lifestyle factors are involved in these trends, an increasing body of evidence implicates environmental exposures in early life on health outcomes in adulthood. Maternal obesity and diabetes during pregnancy, which have increased dramatically in recent years, also have profound effects on fetal growth and development. Mounting evidence is emerging that maternal obesity and diabetes during pregnancy have lifelong effects on cardiovascular risk factors and heart disease development. However, the mechanisms responsible for these observations are unknown. In this review, we summarize the findings of recent experimental studies, showing that maternal obesity and diabetes during pregnancy affect energy metabolism and heart disease development in the offspring, with a focus on the mechanisms involved. We also evaluate early proof-of-concept studies for interventions that could mitigate maternal obesity and gestational diabetes-induced cardiovascular disease risk in the offspring.
Keyphrases
- cardiovascular disease
- cardiovascular risk factors
- type diabetes
- metabolic syndrome
- insulin resistance
- weight loss
- weight gain
- birth weight
- high fat diet induced
- glycemic control
- pregnancy outcomes
- early life
- cardiovascular events
- high fat diet
- blood pressure
- pulmonary hypertension
- body mass index
- skeletal muscle
- depressive symptoms
- coronary artery disease
- air pollution
- pregnant women
- adipose tissue
- diabetic rats
- oxidative stress
- gestational age
- life cycle