Female reproductive tract fluids: composition, mechanism of formation and potential role in the developmental origins of health and disease

2008 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry J. Leese ◽  
Sasha A. Hugentobler ◽  
Susan M. Gray ◽  
Dermot G. Morris ◽  
Roger G. Sturmey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Potential Role ◽  
Reproductive Tract ◽  
Maternal Diet ◽  
Female Reproductive Tract ◽  
Developmental Origins ◽  
Mammalian Embryo ◽  
Healthy Pregnancy ◽  
Early Embryos ◽  
Health And Disease ◽  
Uptake Of Nutrients

The oviduct and uterus provide the environments for the earliest stages of mammalian embryo development. However, little is known about the mechanisms that underlie the formation of oviduct and uterine fluids, or the extent to which the supply of nutrients via these reproductive tract tissues matches the nutrient requirements of early embryos. After reviewing our limited knowledge of these phenomena, a new experimental paradigm is proposed in which the epithelia lining the endosalpinx and endometrium are seen as the final components in a supply line that links maternal diet at one end and embryo uptake of nutrients at the other. When considered in this way, the oviduct and uterine epithelia become, for a few days, potentially the most critical maternal tissues in the establishment of a healthy pregnancy. In fulfilling this ‘gatekeeper’ role, female reproductive tract fluids have a key role in the ‘developmental origins of health and disease’ concept.

The case in favour of probiotics before, during and after pregnancy: insights from the first 1,500 days

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 353-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Reid ◽  
H. Kumar ◽  
A.I. Khan ◽  
S. Rautava ◽  
J. Tobin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Current Literature ◽  
Early Phase ◽  
Reproductive Tract ◽  
Female Reproductive Tract ◽  
Healthy Start ◽  
Human Reproduction ◽  
Washington Dc ◽  
Beneficial Microbes ◽  
Healthy Pregnancy

Successful human reproduction requires microbial homeostasis in the female reproductive tract, and colonisation of the newborn with beneficial microbes. In order to prevent several complications associated with dysbiosis, the administration of probiotics is more often being considered. The objective of the enclosed review was to examine the rationale for probiotic utility before and during pregnancy and in the early phase of infant life. The conclusions emerged from a panel of researchers who met during the International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP) workshop held in Washington, DC, USA in 2015. The group concluded based upon the current literature, that a case can be made for the use of a specific sets of probiotic organisms during the first 1,500 days of life, with the goal of a healthy pregnancy to term, and a healthy start to life with lowered risk of infections and inflammatory events. The key to successfully translating these recommendations to practice is that products be made available and affordable to women in developed and developing countries.

scholarly journals Metabolomics in the developmental origins of obesity and its cardiometabolic consequences

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 65-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. F. Hivert ◽  
W. Perng ◽  
S. M. Watkins ◽  
C. S. Newgard ◽  
L. C. Kenny ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Course ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
Developmental Origins ◽  
Excess Adiposity ◽  
Health And Disease ◽  
The Life Course ◽  
Analytical Approaches ◽  
Review Current

In this review, we discuss the potential role of metabolomics to enhance understanding of obesity-related developmental origins of health and disease (DOHaD). We first provide an overview of common techniques and analytical approaches to help interested investigators dive into this relatively novel field. Next, we describe how metabolomics may capture exposures that are notoriously difficult to quantify, and help to further refine phenotypes associated with excess adiposity and related metabolic sequelae over the life course. Together, these data can ultimately help to elucidate mechanisms that underlie fetal metabolic programming. Finally, we review current gaps in knowledge and identify areas where the field of metabolomics is likely to provide insights into mechanisms linked to DOHaD in human populations.

Hydrogen peroxide levels in mouse oocytes and early cleavage stage embryos developed in vitro or in vivo

Development ◽  
1990 ◽  
Vol 109 (2) ◽  
pp. 501-507 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.H. Nasr-Esfahani ◽  
J.R. Aitken ◽  
M.H. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Tract ◽  
Female Reproductive Tract ◽  
Cell Stage ◽  
Mouse Oocytes ◽  
Early Embryos ◽  
Individual Mouse ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Developmental Block

We describe a fluorimetric method for measuring the level of H2O2 in individual mouse oocytes and early embryos. Levels of H2O2 are low but detectable in unfertilized oocytes recovered freshly from the female reproductive tract. The levels in early cleaving embryos (1-cell to 8-cell stages) immediately after recovery from the female tract seem to be slightly higher the later the stage examined. However, when embryos are cultured in vitro from the 1-cell or early 2-cell stage, H2O2 levels rise when the embryos reach the mid-2-cell stage and remain elevated until they enter the early 4-cell stage. No equivalent elevation of H2O2 is seen during the transition from 1-cell to 2-cell or from 4-cell to 8-cell stages. Embryos that are able to develop successfully in vitro, as well as those that show a developmental block at the 2-cell stage on culture in vitro, both show this rise in H2O2 levels after in vitro culture. The relationship between the rise in H2O2 and the ‘2-cell block’ to development is discussed.

Mechanisms of epigenetic remodelling during preimplantation development

2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo Juan Ross ◽  
Sebastian Canovas
Keyword(s):  
Information Needs ◽  
Reproductive Tract ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Primordial Germ Cells ◽  
Early Embryo ◽  
Female Reproductive Tract ◽  
Preimplantation Embryos ◽  
Epigenetic Information ◽  
Health And Disease

Epigenetics involves mechanisms independent of modifications in the DNA sequence that result in changes in gene expression and are maintained through cell divisions. Because all cells in the organism contain the same genetic blueprint, epigenetics allows for cells to assume different phenotypes and maintain them upon cell replication. As such, during the life cycle, there are moments in which the epigenetic information needs to be reset for the initiation of a new organism. In mammals, the resetting of epigenetic marks occurs at two different moments, which both happen to be during gestation, and include primordial germ cells (PGCs) and early preimplantation embryos. Because epigenetic information is reversible and sensitive to environmental changes, it is probably no coincidence that both these extensive periods of epigenetic remodelling happen in the female reproductive tract, under a finely controlled maternal environment. It is becoming evident that perturbations during the extensive epigenetic remodelling in PGCs and embryos can lead to permanent and inheritable changes to the epigenome that can result in long-term changes to the offspring derived from them, as indicated by the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) hypothesis and recent demonstration of inter- and trans-generational epigenetic alterations. In this context, an understanding of the mechanisms of epigenetic remodelling during early embryo development is important to assess the potential for gametic epigenetic mutations to contribute to the offspring and for new epimutations to be established during embryo manipulations that could affect a large number of cells in the offspring. It is of particular interest to understand whether and how epigenetic information can be passed on from the gametes to the embryo or offspring, and whether abnormalities in this process could lead to transgenerationally inheritable phenotypes. The aim of this review is to highlight recent progress made in understanding the nature and mechanisms of epigenetic remodelling that ensue after fertilisation.

scholarly journals Immunology of pregnancy

2010 ◽  
Vol 69 (3) ◽  
pp. 357-365 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine A. Thornton
Keyword(s):  
Disease Prevention ◽  
Maternal Diet ◽  
Healthy Pregnancy ◽  
Disease Outcomes ◽  
Maternal Immune System ◽  
Immune Mediated ◽  
Health And Disease ◽  
Adverse Pregnancy ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Positive Effect

The conceptual framework for reproductive immunology was put in place over 50 years ago when the survival of the fetal semi-allograft within an immunocompetent mother was first considered. During this time, a number of paradigms have emerged and the mechanisms receiving current attention are those related to immune tolerance, such as regulatory T-cells and indoleamine 2,3,-dioxygenase, and innate immunity, such as natural killer cells, trophoblast debris and inflammation. A key consideration is the temporal and spatial variation in any of these pathways (e.g. implantation v. parturition). As fetally derived trophoblasts are the semi-allogeneic cells with which the maternal immune system comes into contact, understanding the immune response to these cells is critical. There is much interest in the immunological pathways that support a healthy pregnancy and how they might be perturbed in adverse pregnancy outcomes. Additionally, there is increasing awareness that antenatal determinants of the immune function of pregnant women and their offspring have consequences for health and disease in childhood and beyond. Changes in maternal diet over recent decades coincide with the increasing prevalence of allergic and other immune-mediated diseases, and the modification of maternal diet has emerged as a strategy for disease prevention. Approaches undergoing trial at numerous sites around the world include dietary supplementation with fish oil and/or probiotics. Understanding the underlying mechanisms of any positive effect on disease outcomes should reveal further novel strategies for disease prevention.

scholarly journals Human mucosal tissue-resident memory T cells in health and disease

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua Lange ◽  
Olga Rivera-Ballesteros ◽  
Marcus Buggert
Keyword(s):  
T Cells ◽  
Reproductive Tract ◽  
Memory T Cells ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Immune Surveillance ◽  
Female Reproductive Tract ◽  
Local Immunity ◽  
Health And Disease ◽  
Resident Memory T Cells

AbstractMemory T cells are fundamental to maintain immune surveillance of the human body. During the past decade, it has become apparent that non-recirculating resident memory T cells (TRMs) form a first line memory response in tissues to tackle re-infections. The fact that TRMs are essential for local immunity highlights the therapeutic potential of targeting this population against tumors and infections. However, similar to other immune subsets, TRMs are heterogenous and may form distinct effector populations with unique functions at diverse tissue sites. Further insight into the mechanisms of how TRM function and respond to pathogens and malignancies at different mucosal sites will help to shape future vaccine and immunotherapeutic approaches. Here, we review the current understanding of TRM function and biology at four major mucosal sites: gastrointestinal tract, lung, head and neck, as well as female reproductive tract. We also summarize our current knowledge of how TRM targets invading pathogens and developing tumor cells at these mucosal sites and contemplate how TRMs may be exploited to protect from infections and cancer.

Antimicrobial Peptides in Human Disease: Therapeutic Approaches. Second of Two Parts

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (10) ◽  
pp. 1148-1156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thea Magrone ◽  
Matteo Antonio Russo ◽  
Emilio Jirillo
Keyword(s):  
Antimicrobial Activity ◽  
Antimicrobial Peptides ◽  
Human Disease ◽  
Reproductive Tract ◽  
Pathological Condition ◽  
Multiple Organ ◽  
Female Reproductive Tract ◽  
Clinical Settings ◽  
Antibiotic Resistant ◽  
Health And Disease

Antimicrobial Peptides (AMPs) are produced by a variety of human immune and non immune cells in health and disease. In virtue of their antimicrobial activity, AMPs have been exploited in human disease and here this aspect will extensively be described. AMPs in comparison to antibiotics possess a larger spectrum of antimicrobial activity without inducing microbial resistance. Therefore, their use in the course of antibiotic-resistant infections is justified. AMP activity in early life, in the airways, in the oral and gastro-enteric system, in the skin and in the female reproductive tract, respectively, will be elucidated. In addition, the use of AMPs in sepsis will be discussed due to the frequency of this pathological condition characterized by multiple organ dysfunctions. Finally, the evidence that AMPs represent valid substitutes of antibiotics will be provided and a series of novel substances able to reinforce the innate immune response in different clinical settings will be discussed.

scholarly journals Gynecologic health and disease in relation to the microbiome of the female reproductive tract

2015 ◽  
Vol 104 (6) ◽  
pp. 1351-1357 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine A. Green ◽  
Shvetha M. Zarek ◽  
William H. Catherino
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Tract ◽  
Female Reproductive Tract ◽  
Health And Disease
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