scholarly journals Intrauterine Growth Restriction: Hungry for an Answer

Physiology ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sherin U. Devaskar ◽  
Alison Chu
Keyword(s):  
Intrauterine Growth Restriction ◽  
Epigenetic Modification ◽  
Growth Restriction ◽  
Cardiometabolic Disease ◽  
Lifestyle Modifications ◽  
Poor Growth ◽  
Public Health Burden ◽  
Metabolic Phenotypes ◽  
Intrauterine Growth ◽  
Significant Public Health

Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) has been defined in several ways, but in general describes a condition in which the fetus exhibits poor growth in utero. This complication of pregnancy poses a significant public health burden as well as increased morbidity and mortality for the offspring. In human IUGR, alteration in fetal glucose and insulin homeostasis occurs in an effort to conserve energy and survive at the expense of fetal growth in an environment of inadequate nutrient provision. Several animal models of IUGR have been utilized to study the effects of IUGR on fetal glucose handling, as well as the postnatal reprogramming of energy metabolite handling, which may be unmasked in adulthood as a maladaptive propensity for cardiometabolic disease. This developmental programming may be mediated in part by epigenetic modification of essential regulators of glucose homeostasis. Several pharmacological therapies and nonpharmacological lifestyle modifications have shown early promise in mitigating the risk for or severity of adult metabolic phenotypes but still require further study of unanticipated and/or untoward side effects.

scholarly journals Isolated Hypomethylation of IGF2 Associated with Severe Hypoglycemia Responsive to Growth Hormone Treatment

Diagnostics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 749
Author(s):  
Sarah C. Grünert ◽  
Uta Matysiak ◽  
Franka Hodde ◽  
Gunda Ruzaike ◽  
Ekkehart Lausch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Growth Hormone ◽  
Intrauterine Growth Restriction ◽  
Severe Hypoglycemia ◽  
Hormone Treatment ◽  
Postnatal Growth ◽  
Growth Restriction ◽  
Poor Growth ◽  
Feeding Difficulties ◽  
Intrauterine Growth ◽  
Pathogenic Variants

Hypomethylation of H19 and IGF2 can cause Silver–Russell syndrome (SRS), a clinically and genetically heterogeneous condition characterized by intrauterine growth restriction, poor postnatal growth, relative macrocephaly, craniofacial abnormalities, body asymmetry, hypoglycemia and feeding difficulties. Isolated hypomethylation of IGF2 has been reported in single cases of SRS as well. Here, we report on a 19-month-old patient who presented with two episodes of hypoglycemic seizures. No intrauterine growth restriction was observed, the patient did not present with SRS-typical facial features, and postnatal growth in the first months of life was along the lower normal percentiles. Exome sequencing did not reveal any likely pathogenic variants explaining the phenotype; however, hypomethylation studies revealed isolated hypomethylation of IGF2, while the methylation of H19 appeared normal. Hypoglycemia responded well to growth hormone therapy, and the boy showed good catch-up growth. Our case demonstrates that SRS and isolated IGF2 hypomethylation should be considered early in the diagnosis of recurrent hypoglycemia in childhood, especially in combination with small gestational age and poor growth.

scholarly journals Polyphenols and IUGR Pregnancies: Intrauterine Growth Restriction and Hydroxytyrosol Affect the Development and Neurotransmitter Profile of the Hippocampus in a Pig Model

Antioxidants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 1505
Author(s):  
Natalia Yeste ◽  
Néstor Gómez ◽  
Marta Vázquez-Gómez ◽  
Consolación García-Contreras ◽  
Martí Pumarola ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Weight ◽  
Intrauterine Growth Restriction ◽  
Maternal Nutrition ◽  
Neuronal Morphology ◽  
Growth Restriction ◽  
Poor Growth ◽  
Neuronal Markers ◽  
Intrauterine Growth ◽  
Cornu Ammonis ◽  
Neurochemical Changes

Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) refers to poor growth of a fetus during pregnancy due to deficient maternal nutrition or oxygen supply. Supplementation of a mother’s diet with antioxidants, such as hydroxytyrosol (HTX), has been proposed to ameliorate the adverse phenotypes of IUGR. In the present study, sows were treated daily with or without 1.5 mg of HTX per kilogram of feed from day 35 of pregnancy (at 30% of the total gestational period), and fetuses were sampled at day 100 of gestation. Fetuses were classified as normal body weight (NBW) or low body weight (LBW) as a consequence of IUGR, constituting four groups: NBW-Control, NBW-HTX, LBW-Control, and LBW-HTX. The brain was removed, and the hippocampus, amygdala, and prefrontal cortex were rapidly dissected. Neuronal markers were studied by immunohistochemistry, and a decrease in the number of mature neurons in the hippocampal Cornu Ammonis subfield 1 (CA1) and the Dentate Gyrus (DG) regions was observed in LBW fetuses together with a higher number of immature neurons and other alterations in neuronal morphology. Furthermore, IUGR conditions altered the neurotransmitter (NT) profile, since an increase in the serotonin (5-HT) pathway was observed in LBW fetuses. Supplementation with HTX was able to reverse the morphological and neurochemical changes, leading both characteristics to values similar to those of NBW fetuses.

scholarly journals Intrauterine Growth Restriction Programs Intergenerational Transmission of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension and Endothelial Dysfunction via Sperm Epigenetic Modifications

Hypertension ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 74 (5) ◽  
pp. 1160-1171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ziming Zhang ◽  
Xiaofei Luo ◽  
Ying Lv ◽  
Lingling Yan ◽  
Shanshan Xu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension ◽  
Endothelial Dysfunction ◽  
Arterial Hypertension ◽  
Intergenerational Transmission ◽  
Intrauterine Growth Restriction ◽  
First Generation ◽  
Epigenetic Modification ◽  
Growth Restriction ◽  
Intrauterine Growth ◽  
Pulmonary Arterial

Intrauterine life represents a window of phenotypic plasticity which carries consequences for later health in adulthood as well as health of subsequent generations. Intrauterine growth-restricted fetuses (intrauterine growth restriction [IUGR]) have a higher risk of pulmonary arterial hypertension in adulthood. Endothelial dysfunction, characterized by hyperproliferation, invasive migration, and disordered angiogenesis, is a hallmark of pulmonary arterial hypertension pathogenesis. Growing evidence suggests that intergenerational transmission of disease, including metabolic syndrome, can be induced by IUGR. Epigenetic modification of the paternal germline is implicated in this transmission. However, it is unclear whether offspring of individuals born with IUGR are also at risk of developing pulmonary arterial hypertension and endothelial dysfunction. Using a model of maternal caloric restriction to induce IUGR, we found that first and second generations of IUGR exhibited elevated pulmonary arterial pressure, myocardial, and vascular remodeling after prolonged exposure to hypoxia. Primary pulmonary vascular endothelial cells (PVECs) from both first and second generations of IUGR exhibited greater proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis. Moreover, in 2 generations, PVECs-derived ET-1 (endothelin-1) was activated by IUGR and hypoxia, and its knockdown mitigated PVECs dysregulation. Most interestingly, within ET-1 first intron, reduced DNA methylation and enhanced tri-methylation of lysine 4 on histone H3 were observed in PVECs and sperm of first generation of IUGR, with DNA demethylation in PVECs of second generation of IUGR. These results suggest that IUGR permanently altered epigenetic signatures of ET-1 from the sperm and PVECs in the first generation, which was subsequently transferred to PVECs of offspring. This mechanism would yield 2 generations with endothelial dysfunction and pulmonary arterial hypertension–like pathophysiological features in adulthood.

scholarly journals 258 Deficits in growth, muscle mass, and body composition following intrauterine growth restriction persisted in lambs at 60 d of age but were improved by daily clenbuterol supplementation

2020 ◽  
Vol 98 (Supplement_4) ◽  
pp. 199-199
Author(s):  
Rachel L Gibbs ◽  
Rebecca M Swanson ◽  
Joslyn K Beard ◽  
Ty B Schmidt ◽  
Jessica L Petersen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Composition ◽  
Intrauterine Growth Restriction ◽  
Average Daily Gain ◽  
Muscle Growth ◽  
Bioelectrical Impedance ◽  
Growth Restriction ◽  
Lung Weight ◽  
Poor Growth ◽  
Crown Rump Length ◽  
Intrauterine Growth

Abstract Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) reduces neonatal muscle growth and alters body composition in livestock. Our objective was to determine the effect of IUGR on juvenile growth and assess the benefits of treatment with clenbuterol (β2 adrenergic agonist) in IUGR offspring. Heat stress-induced IUGR lambs were born 28% lighter (P < 0.05) than controls. At 60 d of age, unsupplemented IUGR lambs had reduced (P < 0.05) bodyweight (BW), average daily gain, and crown-rump length compared to controls, but clenbuterol-supplemented IUGR lambs did not differ from controls. Crown circumference, body girth, and cannon bone length did not differ among groups. Bioelectrical impedance in live lambs and carcasses estimated that lean mass and mass of multiple muscle groups were reduced (P < 0.05) in unsupplemented IUGR lambs but not clenbuterol-supplemented IUGR lambs compared to controls. Estimated protein, fat, and protein/fat were likewise reduced (P < 0.05) in unsupplemented but not clenbuterol-supplemented IUGR lambs. Loin-eye area in chilled carcasses was 30% smaller (P < 0.05) in unsupplemented IUGR lambs but 19% larger (P < 0.05) in clenbuterol-supplemented IUGR lambs compared to controls. Proximate analysis revealed greater (P < 0.05) fat and reduced (P < 0.05) protein and protein/fat in loin muscles from unsupplemented but not clenbuterol-supplemented IUGR lambs compared to controls. At necropsy, hindlimbs, hearts, and flexor digitorum superficialis muscles tended to be lighter (P ≤ 0.09) and lungs and kidneys were lighter (P < 0.05) in IUGR lambs. Kidney weight was further reduced (P < 0.05) in clenbuterol-supplemented IUGR lambs. Brain/BW tended to be reduced (P ≤ 0.09) and lung/BW and kidney/BW were reduced (P < 0.05) in IUGR lambs, but lung weight and lung/BW were greater (P < 0.05) in clenbuterol-supplemented compared to unsupplemented IUGR lambs. We conclude that poor growth and asymmetric body composition previously observed in IUGR neonates persists in juveniles, but daily treatment with clenbuterol recovered growth and improved body composition in IUGR lambs.

Pathological features of the sequence in pregnant women with delayed fetal growth

2019 ◽  
pp. 50-54
Author(s):  
V.O. Golyanovskiy ◽  
◽  
Ye.O. Didyk ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Intrauterine Growth Restriction ◽  
Normal Development ◽  
Intrauterine Infection ◽  
Normal Pregnancy ◽  
Growth Restriction ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Intrauterine Growth ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Infection And Inflammation

Pregnant women with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) have an increased risk of adverse perinatal and long-term complications compared with the birth of children with normal body weight. Thus, IUGR is one of the main challenges for the global health system, especially in poor and developing countries. Morpho-functional studies of the placentas help in determining the causes of IUGR, and therefore, timely prevent complications in pregnant women with IUGR. The objective: The purpose of this study is to investigate various morphometric and pathomorphological changes in the placenta, including inflammatory, in cases of IUGR, and to establish a correlation of these results with the etiology and complications for the fetus. Materials and methods. In the current study, 54 placentas of the fetuses with IUGR (the main group) were compared with 50 placentas of the fetuses with normal development (control group). The criteria for the inclusion of IUGR were gestational age more than 30 weeks and all fetuses with a weight less than 10th percentile for this period of pregnancy. The placenta material was studied pathomorphologically with laboratory screening for infection and inflammation. Similarly, the results were determined for placentas of the fetuses with normal development compared to placentas with IUGR. Results. The placenta study showed the presence of calcification in the case of IUGR, as well as in the case of prolonged pregnancy. However, calcification of the placenta in the case of IUGR was more progressive compared with placenta in the normal pregnancy. In addition, the presence of intrauterine infection and inflammation was observed, which could also lead to an adverse outcome for the further progression of pregnancy with IUGR. Conclusion. A comparative macro- and microscopic pathomorphological study of the placentas in the two groups has shown a significant increase in the pathological changes in all the anatomical structures of the fetuses with IUGR. Key words: Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), fetal weight, pathomorphological changes of the placenta.

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