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Review
. 2020 Mar;47(1):65-79.
doi: 10.1016/j.ogc.2019.11.001. Epub 2019 Dec 18.

Diabetes Mellitus, Obesity, and the Placenta

Gernot Desoye  1 , Mila Cervar-Zivkovic  2
Affiliations
Review

Diabetes Mellitus, Obesity, and the Placenta

Gernot Desoye et al. Obstet Gynecol Clin North Am. 2020 Mar.

Abstract

The placenta is exposed to metabolic derangements in the maternal and fetal circulation. The effects of the early placental "exposome" determine further trajectories. Overstimulation of the fetal pancreas in early gestation results in fetal hyperinsulinemia, augmenting glucose transfer with adverse effects on the fetus. The manifold placental changes at the end of pregnancy can be regarded as adaptive responses to protect the fetus from diabetes and obesity. The causal role of the placenta, if any, in mediating long-term effects on offspring development is an important area of current and future research.

Keywords: Fetal phenotype; Glucose; Insulin; Placental development; Sexual dimorphism; Stress.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure The authors have nothing to disclose. Work of the authors was funded by grants of the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), Vienna, and the Jubilee Fund of the Austrian National Bank (OENB), Vienna, as well as by the European Commission (Brussels).