Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2012:2012:792934.
doi: 10.1155/2012/792934. Epub 2012 Aug 16.

Fetal programming of the neuroendocrine-immune system and metabolic disease

R E Fisher  1 , M Steele, N A Karrow
Affiliations
Review

Fetal programming of the neuroendocrine-immune system and metabolic disease

R E Fisher et al. J Pregnancy. 2012.

Abstract

Adverse uterine environments experienced during fetal development can alter the projected growth pattern of various organs and systems of the body, leaving the offspring at an increased risk of metabolic disease. The thrifty phenotype hypothesis has been demonstrated as an alteration to the growth trajectory to improve the survival and reproductive fitness of the individual. However, when the intrauterine environment does not match the extrauterine environment problems can arise. With the increase in metabolic diseases in both Westernized and developing countries, it is becoming apparent that there is an environmental disconnect with the extrauterine environment. Therefore, the focus of this paper will be to explore the effects of maternal malnutrition on the offspring's susceptibility to metabolic disorders such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes with emphasis on programming of the neuroendocrine-immune system.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Chadio SE, Kotsampasi B, Papadomichelakis G, et al. Impact of maternal undernutrition in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis responsiveness in sheep at different ages postnatal. Journal of Endocrinology. 2007;192(3):495–503. - PubMed
    1. Bloomfield FH, Oliver MH, Giannoulias CD, Gluckman PD, Harding JE, Challis JRG. Brief undernutrition in late-gestation sheep programs the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in adult offspring. Endocrinology. 2003;144(7):2933–2940. - PubMed
    1. Fisher RE, Karrow NA, Quinton M, et al. Endotoxin exposure during late pregnancy alters ovine offspring febrile and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis responsiveness later in life. Stress. 2010;13(4):334–342. - PubMed
    1. Ravelli ACJ, Van Der Meulen JHP, Osmond C, Barker DJP, Bleker OP. Obesity at the age of 50 y in men and women exposed to famine prenatally. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 1999;70(5):811–816. - PubMed
    1. Gluckman PD, Cutfield W, Hofman P, Hanson MA. The fetal, neonatal, and infant environments-the long-term consequences for disease risk. Early Human Development. 2005;81(1):51–59. - PubMed

MeSH terms