scholarly journals Endothermy, offspring size and evolution of parental provisioning in vertebrates

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shai Meiri
Keyword(s):  
Offspring Size ◽  
Recent Theory ◽  
Ancestral Condition ◽  
Large Size ◽  
Parental Provisioning ◽  
Size At Birth

Abstract Mammals and birds provide food for their young after birth, but such provisioning is almost absent in other vertebrates. A recent theory suggested that, in addition to thermoregulation, the large discrepancy in size between adult and young ectothermic vertebrates precludes them from providing for their young, whereas the relatively large offspring of endotherms are easier to provision. I show here that reptile neonates and hatchlings are as large as those of mammals and birds. Differences in size between adults and young thus cannot explain the lack of parental provisioning in reptiles. I suggest that the large size at birth is the ancestral condition in amniotes as a whole and that provisioning has thus evolved after endothermy.

scholarly journals The influence of maternal pregnancy glucose concentrations on associations between a fetal imprinted gene allele score and offspring size at birth

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Clive J. Petry ◽  
Ken K. Ong ◽  
Ieuan A. Hughes ◽  
Carlo L. Acerini ◽  
David B. Dunger
Keyword(s):  
Offspring Size ◽  
Imprinted Gene ◽  
Size At Birth

scholarly journals Reproductive Success of American Kestrels: The Role of Prey Abundance and Weather

The Condor ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 102 (4) ◽  
pp. 814-822 ◽  
Author(s):  
Russell D. Dawson ◽  
Gary R. Bortolotti
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Natural Variation ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Prey Abundance ◽  
Offspring Size ◽  
Minimum Threshold ◽  
Provisioning Behavior ◽  
American Kestrels ◽  
Parental Provisioning

Abstract We investigated how natural variation in abundance and availability of the main prey of American Kestrels (Falco sparverius), small mammals, influenced provisioning rates by parents, and offspring size and survival. Provisioning behavior of kestrels was not constrained by the abundance of food in the environment; however, the availability of food, mediated through variation in weather, appeared to significantly influence parental provisioning behavior. Moreover, variation in weather had clear effects on reproductive success because nestlings exposed to inclement weather were smaller and lighter at fledging, and less likely to survive to fledging, compared to nestlings raised during good weather conditions. Prey abundance was not related to offspring size or survival. Our results suggest American Kestrels are limited by the availability, as opposed to abundance, of food on territories. It is likely that during our study, prey abundance was above some minimum threshold necessary to support successful reproduction, and so variation in weather affected reproduction more than variation in prey abundance.

scholarly journals Pregnancy Serum DLK1 Concentrations are associated with Indices of Insulin Resistance and Secretion

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clive J Petry ◽  
Keith A Burling ◽  
Peter Barker ◽  
Ieuan A Hughes ◽  
Ken K Ong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Insulin Resistance ◽  
Transmembrane Protein ◽  
Protein A ◽  
Maternal Serum ◽  
Offspring Size ◽  
Oral Glucose ◽  
Insulinogenic Index ◽  
Glucose Tolerance Tests ◽  
Epidermal Growth ◽  
Size At Birth

Abstract Context DLK1 (delta like non-canonical notch ligand 1) is a paternally-expressed imprinted gene that encodes an epidermal growth factor repeat-containing transmembrane protein. A bioactive, truncated DLK1 protein is present in the circulation, and has roles in development and metabolism. Objective We sought to investigate links between maternal pregnancy circulating DLK1 concentrations and: (1) maternal and fetal DLK1 genotypes, (2) maternal insulin resistance and secretion and (3) offspring size at birth. Patients, design and setting We measured third trimester maternal serum DLK1 concentrations and examined their associations with parentally-transmitted fetal and maternal DLK1 genotypes, indices of maternal insulin resistance and secretion derived from 75g oral glucose tolerance tests performed around week 28 of pregnancy, and offspring size at birth in 613 pregnancies from the Cambridge Baby Growth Study. Results Maternal DLK1 concentrations were associated with the paternally-transmitted fetal DLK1 rs12147008 allele (p=7.8x10 -3) but not with maternal rs12147008 genotype (p=0.4). Maternal DLK1 concentrations were positively associated with maternal pre-pregnancy BMI (p=3.5x10 6), and (after adjustment for maternal BMI) with both maternal fasting insulin resistance (HOMA IR: p=0.01) and measures of maternal insulin secretion in response to oral glucose (insulinogenic index: p=1.2x10 -3; insulin disposition index: p=0.049). Further positive associations were found with offspring weight (p=0.02) and head circumference at birth (p=0.04). Conclusion These results are consistent with a partial paternal or placental origin for the maternal circulating DLK1 which may lead to increased maternal circulating DLK1 concentrations, stimulation of maternal insulin resistance and compensatory hyperinsulinemia during pregnancy, and the promotion of fetal growth.

scholarly journals Maternal predator‐exposure affects offspring size at birth but not telomere length in a live‐bearing fish

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 2030-2039 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefano Monteforte ◽  
Silvia Cattelan ◽  
Chiara Morosinotto ◽  
Andrea Pilastro ◽  
Alessandro Grapputo
Keyword(s):  
Telomere Length ◽  
Offspring Size ◽  
Size At Birth

Cerebral gigantism (Sotos' syndrome). A rare cause of delayed walking and awkward gait

1995 ◽  
Vol 85 (9) ◽  
pp. 497-499 ◽  
Author(s):  
E Sobel
Keyword(s):  
Speech Development ◽  
Sotos Syndrome ◽  
Early Language ◽  
Cerebral Gigantism ◽  
Early Language Development ◽  
Large Size ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Common ◽  
Craniofacial Features ◽  
Size At Birth

A case history of an 8-year-old girl with cerebral gigantism (Sotos' syndrome) has been presented. Throughout her life, this child has demonstrated all of the common features of Sotos' syndrome including large size at birth, excessive growth during childhood, dysmorphic craniofacial features, delay in motor and speech development, generalized clumsiness, and awkward gait. Family history was contributory with delays in early language development and the possibility that the child's father had Sotos' syndrome. When evaluating a pediatric patient for pes planus, delayed walking, and gait problems, the practitioner should consider the entire clinical profile and unusual etiologies.

scholarly journals Incidence of neonatal mortality and its predictors among live births in Ethiopia: Gompertz gamma shared frailty model

2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zemenu Tadesse Tessema ◽  
Getayeneh Antehunegn Tesema
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Antenatal Care ◽  
Neonatal Mortality ◽  
Frailty Model ◽  
Live Births ◽  
Large Size ◽  
Shared Frailty Model ◽  
Shared Frailty ◽  
Male Sex ◽  
Size At Birth

Abstract Background Neonatal mortality remains a serious public health concern in developing countries including Ethiopia. Ethiopia is one of the countries with the highest neonatal mortality in Africa. However, there is limited evidence on the incidence and predictors of neonatal mortality at the national level. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the incidence of neonatal mortality and its predictors among live births in Ethiopia. Investigating the incidence and predictors of neonatal mortality is essential to design targeted public health interventions to reduce neonatal mortality. Methods A secondary data analysis was conducted based on the 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) data. A total weighted sample of 11,022 live births was included in the analysis. The shared frailty model was applied since the EDHS data has hierarchical nature, and neonates are nested within-cluster, and this could violate the independent and equal variance assumption. For checking the proportional hazard assumption, Schoenfeld residual test was applied. Akakie Information Criteria (AIC), Cox-Snell residual test, and deviance were used for checking model adequacy and for model comparison. Gompertz gamma shared frailty model was the best-fitted model for this data since it had the lowest deviance, AIC value, and the Cox-Snell residual graph closet to the bisector. Variables with a p-value of less than 0.2 were considered for the multivariable Gompertz gamma shared frailty model. In the multivariable Gompertez gamma shared frailty model, the Adjusted Hazard Ratio (AHR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was reported to identify significant predictors of neonatal mortality. Results Overall, the neonatal mortality rate in Ethiopia was 29.1 (95% CI: 26.1, 32.4) per 1000 live births. In the multivariable Gompertz gamma shared frailty model; male sex (AHR = 1.92, 95% CI: 1.52, 2.43), twin birth (AHR = 5.22, 95% CI: 3.62, 7.53), preceding birth interval less than 18 months (AHR = 2.07, 95% CI: 1.51, 2.85), small size at birth (AHR = 1.64, 95% CI: 1.24, 2.16), large size at birth (AHR = 1.53, 95% CI: 1.16, 2.01) and did not have Antenatal Care (ANC) visit (AHR = 2.10, 95% CI: 1.44, 3.06) were the significant predictors of neonatal mortality. Conclusion Our study found that neonatal mortality remains a public health problem in Ethiopia. Shorter birth interval, small and large size at birth, ANC visits, male sex, and twin births were significant predictors of neonatal mortality. These results suggest that public health programs that increase antenatal care service utilization should be designed to reduce neonatal mortality and special attention should be given for twin births, large and low birth weight babies. Besides, providing family planning services for mothers to increase birth intervals and improving accessibility and utilization of maternal health care services such as ANC is crucial to improve neonatal survival.

scholarly journals Multiple Micronutrient Supplementation during Pregnancy and Increased Birth Weight and Skinfold Thicknesses in the Offspring: The Cambridge Baby Growth Study

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 3466
Author(s):  
Clive J. Petry ◽  
Ken K. Ong ◽  
Ieuan A. Hughes ◽  
David B. Dunger
Keyword(s):  
Glucose Tolerance ◽  
Offspring Size ◽  
Oral Glucose ◽  
Micronutrient Supplementation ◽  
Oral Glucose Tolerance ◽  
Growth Study ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Multiple Micronutrient ◽  
Size At Birth

Multiple micronutrient supplementation (MMS) in pregnancy has previously been associated with positive effects on fetal growth, but its value in high-income countries remains controversial. In this study, we investigated effects of pregnancy MMS on offspring size at birth and adiposity, along with risks of various maternal outcomes of pregnancy, using the prospective Cambridge Baby Growth Study. Maternal MMS was reported in 528 out of 970 women who completed pregnancy questionnaires. Gestational diabetes (GDM) was assessed using results from 75 g oral glucose tolerance tests at week 28 of pregnancy. Offspring size at birth was assessed using standard anthropometric measurements and adiposity using skinfold calipers. MMS was associated with increased risk of developing GDM (risk ratio = 1.86 (1.13–3.08), p = 0.02), as well as increased offspring size at birth in terms of weight (p = 0.03), head circumference (p = 0.04), and flank, and subscapular and triceps skinfold thicknesses (p = 0.04, 0.03, and 0.003, respectively). There was no association with quadriceps skinfold thickness (p = 0.2), suggesting that the increased adiposity was partially regionalized. In women who underwent oral glucose tolerance testing, nearly all of these associations were attenuated by adjusting for GDM. These results suggest that the increased offspring size at birth, including (regionalized) adiposity associated with pregnancy, and MMS may be partially related to the development of GDM.

High cold tolerance through four seasons and all free-living stages in an ectoparasite

Parasitology ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 139 (7) ◽  
pp. 926-933 ◽  
Author(s):  
LAURA HÄRKÖNEN ◽  
ARJA KAITALA ◽  
SIRPA KAUNISTO ◽  
TAPANI REPO
Keyword(s):  
Cold Tolerance ◽  
Life Stage ◽  
Blood Feeding ◽  
Female Offspring ◽  
Offspring Size ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Large Size ◽  
Four Seasons ◽  
Short And Long Term

SUMMARYOff-host stages of temperate parasites must cope with low temperatures. Cold tolerance is often highest in winter, as a result of diapause and cold acclimation, and low during the active summer stages. In some blood-feeding ectoparasites, offspring provisioning determines cold tolerance through all the non-feeding, off-host stages. Large size increases survival in the cold, but so far seasonal variation in within-female offspring size has not been associated with offspring cold tolerance. The deer ked (Lipoptena cervi) reproduces on cervids from autumn to spring. Newborn pupae drop off the host, facing frosts without any acclimation. We examined cold tolerance through 4 seasons and from birth to adulthood by means of short- and long-term frost exposure. We expected females to produce more tolerant offspring in winter than in spring. Large spring pupae survived prolonged frosts better than did small winter pupae. Thus more tolerant offspring were not produced when the temperature outside the host is at its lowest. Unexpectedly, the freezing points were −20°C or below all year round. We showed that high cold tolerance is possible without acclimation regardless of life stage, which presumably correlates with other survival characteristics, such as the starvation resistance of free-living ectoparasites.

Multi-scale approach to understanding climate effects on offspring size at birth and date of birth in a reptile

2010 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 164-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chloé D. CADBY ◽  
Geoffrey M. WHILE ◽  
Alistair J. HOBDAY ◽  
Tobias ULLER ◽  
Erik WAPSTRA
Keyword(s):  
Offspring Size ◽  
Climate Effects ◽  
Multi Scale ◽  
Size At Birth
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