scholarly journals Placental Origins of Chronic Disease

2016 ◽  
Vol 96 (4) ◽  
pp. 1509-1565 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham J. Burton ◽  
Abigail L. Fowden ◽  
Kent L. Thornburg
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Disease ◽  
Fetal Development ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Environmental Cues ◽  
Epidemiological Evidence ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Organ Systems ◽  
Pass Through ◽  
Complex Relationships ◽  
Diabetes And Obesity

Epidemiological evidence links an individual's susceptibility to chronic disease in adult life to events during their intrauterine phase of development. Biologically this should not be unexpected, for organ systems are at their most plastic when progenitor cells are proliferating and differentiating. Influences operating at this time can permanently affect their structure and functional capacity, and the activity of enzyme systems and endocrine axes. It is now appreciated that such effects lay the foundations for a diverse array of diseases that become manifest many years later, often in response to secondary environmental stressors. Fetal development is underpinned by the placenta, the organ that forms the interface between the fetus and its mother. All nutrients and oxygen reaching the fetus must pass through this organ. The placenta also has major endocrine functions, orchestrating maternal adaptations to pregnancy and mobilizing resources for fetal use. In addition, it acts as a selective barrier, creating a protective milieu by minimizing exposure of the fetus to maternal hormones, such as glucocorticoids, xenobiotics, pathogens, and parasites. The placenta shows a remarkable capacity to adapt to adverse environmental cues and lessen their impact on the fetus. However, if placental function is impaired, or its capacity to adapt is exceeded, then fetal development may be compromised. Here, we explore the complex relationships between the placental phenotype and developmental programming of chronic disease in the offspring. Ensuring optimal placentation offers a new approach to the prevention of disorders such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity, which are reaching epidemic proportions.

A case of linear epidermal naevus presenting as genital warts – a cautionary tale

2005 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 267-269
Author(s):  
M Mahto ◽  
J Ashworth ◽  
D M Vickers
Keyword(s):  
Unusual Case ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Genital Warts ◽  
Definitive Treatment ◽  
Cautionary Tale ◽  
Surgical Ablation ◽  
Genital Area ◽  
Organ Systems ◽  
First Time ◽  
Epidermal Naevus Syndrome

Linear epidermal naevus (LEN) in the genital area is quite rare. It may present at birth or appear later on in life, in infancy or childhood and occasionally for the first time in adult life. There are several variants of epidermal naevi (EN), which, to the less experienced, can be mistaken for warts. When extensive, it can be associated with abnormalities in other organ systems (epidermal naevus syndrome). The definitive treatment of LEN is surgical ablation with excision of underlying dermis, but this frequently leads to scarring. Laser therapy is an alternative treatment modality and good results have been shown. We report an unusual case of LEN in the genital area in a 60-year-old man presenting as genital warts.

scholarly journals Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease: An Overview of the Clinical Approach to Pathogenesis, Diagnosis, and Treatment

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 91-98
Author(s):  
Saurabh Nimesh ◽  
Md. Iftekhar Ahmad ◽  
Shikhka Dhama ◽  
Pradeep Kumar ◽  
Muhammad Akram ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus ◽  
Immune System ◽  
Chronic Disease ◽  
Lupus Erythematosus ◽  
The Body ◽  
Clinical Approach ◽  
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease ◽  
Systemic Lupus ◽  
Organ Systems ◽  
Novel Approaches

The systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), commonly known as Lupus, is a rare and complex multisystem autoimmune disease where one’s immune system is overactive, and the body attacks its organ systems. SLE is a historically old disease described already in antiquity; it is an example of a chronic disease with physical, psychological, financial, and social implications for individuals diagnosed. It has inspired medical and basic biological scientists that focus on molecular biology, basic immunology, immunopathology, clinical science, genetics, and epidemiology. The syndrome is real in its existence-although hidden behind obstacles, cumbersome for patients and clinicians, and rebellious for scientists. There is currently no cure for SLE. The goal of treatment is to ease symptoms. This article will review information on the general approach to SLE therapy, focusing on currently approved therapies and novel approaches that might be used in the future.

scholarly journals Prenatal alcohol exposure programs offspring disease: Insulin resistance in adult males in a rat model of acute exposure

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tam M T Nguyen ◽  
Sarah E Steane ◽  
Karen M Moritz ◽  
Lisa K Akison
Keyword(s):  
Insulin Resistance ◽  
Blood Glucose ◽  
Chronic Disease ◽  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Fetal Development ◽  
Prenatal Alcohol Exposure ◽  
Alcohol Exposure ◽  
Metabolic Dysfunction ◽  
Specific Manner ◽  
Prenatal Alcohol

AbstractAlcohol consumption is highly prevalent amongst women of reproductive age. Given that approximately 50% of pregnancies are unplanned, alcohol has the potential to affect fetal development and program chronic disease in offspring. We examined the effect of an acute but moderate prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) on glucose metabolism, lipid levels and dietary preference in adolescent and/or adult rat offspring. Pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats received an oral gavage of ethanol (1g/kg maternal body weight, n=9 dams) or an equivalent volume of saline (control, n=8 dams) at embryonic days 13.5 and 14.5. PAE resulted in a blood alcohol concentration of 0.05-0.06% 1h post-gavage in dams. Fasting blood glucose concentration was not affected by PAE in offspring at any age, nor were blood glucose levels during a glucose tolerance test (GTT) in 6-month old offspring (P>0.5). However, there was evidence of insulin resistance in PAE male offspring at 6 months of age, with significantly elevated fasting plasma insulin (P= 0.001), a tendency for increased first phase insulin secretion during the GTT and impaired glucose clearance following an insulin challenge (P= 0.007). This was accompanied by modest alterations in protein kinase B (AKT) signalling in adipose tissue. PAE also resulted in reduced calorie consumption by offspring compared to controls (P= 0.04). These data suggest that a relatively low-level, acute PAE programs metabolic dysfunction in offspring in a sex-specific manner. These results highlight that alcohol consumption during pregnancy has the potential to affect the long-term health of offspring.Key points summaryPrenatal alcohol exposure has the potential to affect fetal development and program chronic disease in offspring.Previous preclinical models typically use high, chronic doses of alcohol throughout pregnancy to examine effects on offspring, particularly on the brain and behaviour.In this study we use a rat model of moderate, acute, prenatal alcohol exposure to determine if this can be detrimental to maintenance of glucose homeostasis in adolescent and adult offspring.Although female offspring were relatively unaffected, there was evidence of insulin resistance in 6-month old male offspring exposed to prenatal alcohol, suggestive of a pre-diabetic state.This result suggests that even a relatively low-dose, acute exposure to alcohol during pregnancy can still program metabolic dysfunction in a sex-specific manner.

Long-term health consequences of early-life exposure to substance abuse: an epigenetic perspective

2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 269-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. M. Vaiserman
Keyword(s):  
Substance Abuse ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Developmental Programming ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Maternal Substance Abuse ◽  
Organ Systems ◽  
Abuse During Pregnancy ◽  
The Impact

A growing body of evidence highlights the importance of the nutritional or other environmental stimuli during critical periods of development in the long-term programming of organ systems and homeostatic pathways of the organism. The adverse influences early in development and particularly during intrauterine life have been shown to programme the risks for adverse health outcomes in adult life. The mechanisms underlying developmental programming remain still unclear. However, increasing evidence has been accumulated indicating the important role of epigenetic regulation including DNA methylation, histone modifications and non-coding RNAs in the developmental programming of late-onset pathologies, including cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, and type 2 diabetes. The maternal substance abuse during pregnancy, including smoking, drinking and psychoactive drug intake, is one of the important factors determining the process of developmental programming in modern human beings. The impact of prenatal drug/substance exposure on infant and early childhood development is currently in the main focus. The long-term programming effects of such exposures on aging and associated pathologies, however, have been reported only rarely. The purpose of this review is to provide a summary of recent research findings which indicate that maternal substance abuse during pregnancy and/or neonatal period can programme not only a child's health status, but also can cause long-term or even life-long health outcomes via mechanisms of epigenetic memory.

The Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis and the Fetus

2018 ◽  
Vol 89 (5) ◽  
pp. 380-387 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amr Morsi ◽  
Donald DeFranco ◽  
Selma F. Witchel
Keyword(s):  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Fetal Lung ◽  
Lung Maturation ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Adrenal Steroidogenesis ◽  
Organ Systems ◽  
Fetal Lung Maturation

Glucocorticoids (GCs), cortisol in humans, influence multiple essential maturational events during gestation. In the human fetus, fetal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis function, fetal adrenal steroidogenesis, placental 11β- hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 activity, maternal cortisol concentrations, and environmental factors impact fetal cortisol exposure. The beneficial effects of synthetic glucocorticoids (sGCs), such as dexamethasone and betamethasone, on fetal lung maturation have significantly shifted the management of preterm labor and threatened preterm birth. Accumulating evidence suggests that exposure to sGCs in utero at critical developmental stages can alter the function of organ systems and that these effects may have sequelae that extend into adult life. Maternal stress and environmental influences may also impact fetal GC exposure. This article explores the vulnerability of the fetal HPA axis to endogenous GCs and exogenous sGCs.

Deep Atomic Binding (DAB) Hypothesis: A New Approach of Fission Product Chemistry

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdul-Wali M. S. Ajlouni
Keyword(s):  
Positive Charge ◽  
Chemical Species ◽  
Fission Process ◽  
New Approach ◽  
New Born ◽  
The Media ◽  
Pass Through ◽  
Stable Atom ◽  
Former Ussr

Former studies assumed that, after fission process occurs, the highly ionized new born atoms (20–22 positive charge), ionize the media in which they pass through before becoming stable atoms in a manner similar to 4-MeV-particles. Via ordinary chemical reactions with the surroundings, each stable atom has a probability to form chemical compound. Since there are about 35 different elemental atoms created through fission processes, a large number of chemical species were suggested to be formed. But, these suggested chemical species were not found in the environment after actual releases of FP during accidents like TMI (USA, 1979), and Chernobyl (former USSR, 1986), also the models based on these suggested reactions and species could not interpret the behavior of these actual species. It is assumed here that the ionization states of the new born atoms and the long term high temperature were not dealt with in an appropriate way and they were the reasons of former models failure. Our new approach of DEEP ATOMIC BINDING (DAB) based on the following: 1. The new born atoms which are highly ionized, 10–12 electrons associated with each nucleus, having a large probability to create bonds between them to form molecules. These bonds are at the L, or M shells, and we call it DAB. 2. The molecules stay in the reactor at high temperatures for long periods, so they undergo many stages of composition and decomposition to form giant molecules. By applying DAB approach, field data from Chernobyl, TMI and nuclear detonations could be interpreted with a wide coincidence resulted.

Niko Tinbergen's life and work: a new approach to biology

2007 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 543-553
Author(s):  
Iver Mysterud
Keyword(s):  
Fatty Acid ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Essential Role ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Nobel Laureate ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Acid Deficiency ◽  
Facteurs Environnementaux ◽  
Fatty Acid Deficiency ◽  
Protein Intolerance

English The life and work of the eminent ethologist and Nobel laureate Nikolaas Tinbergen (1907—1988) played an essential role in the introduction of a new approach that is transforming the scientific understanding of animal behaviour, human nature and evolution. This article focuses on an extremely well-written biography of him, Niko's Nature, by Hans Kruuk, one of Tinbergen's former students. Niko's Nature is more than a biography: it is a presentation and an evaluation of the main lines of European ethology and behaviour research in the 20th century up to the 1980s. Tinbergen suffered from depression most of his adult life, and if he had been a child today, he probably would have been diagnosed as hyperactive (ADHD). Tinbergen fits into a pattern of lifelong fatty-acid deficiency. I also discuss other possible causes of his problems (like protein intolerance, vitamin deficiency, genetics and novel environmental factors) and speculate how Tinbergen would have approached such issues if he were alive today. French La vie et l’oeuvre de Nikolaas Tinbergen (1907–1988), éthologue éminent et Prix Nobel, ont été essentielles pour l’apparition d’une approche nouvelle dans la compréhension scientifique du comportement animal, de la nature humaine et de l’évolution. Ce texte commente une biographie de Tinbergen écrite par l’un de ses anciens étudiants Hans Kruuk, Niko’s Nature. Niko’s Nature est plus qu’une simple biographie, il s’agit en fait d’une présentation et d’une évaluation des principaux courants de l’éthologie et de la recherche comportementale en Europe au 20ème siècle, jusqu’aux années 1980. Durant toute sa vie d’adulte, Tinbergen a souffert de dépression et s’il avait été enfant de nos jours, il aurait probablement été diagnostiqué comme enfant hyperactif (THADA). Tinbergen semble correspondre à un schéma de déficience durable en acides gras. L’auteur évoque aussi d’autres pistes explicatives (comme l’intolérance aux protéines, la déficience en vitamines, la génétique, l’apparition de nouveaux facteurs environnementaux) et s’interroge sur la façon dont Tinbergen aurait approché l’étude de ces questions s’il était encore vivant.

4A-5 Infant growth and risk of chronic disease in adult life

2007 ◽  
Vol 83 ◽  
pp. S65
Author(s):  
C. Osmond ◽  
C. Cooper ◽  
A.A. Sayer ◽  
J.G. Eriksson ◽  
E. Kajantie ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Disease ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Infant Growth

Taking Control of Their Lives? The Youth, Citizenship and Social Change Project

2002 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 497-521 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Evans
Keyword(s):  
Social Change ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Research Programme ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Personal Lives ◽  
Early Adult Life ◽  
Youth Citizenship ◽  
Group Interviews ◽  
Pass Through

The question of whether there now exists a period of ‘extended dependency’ in young people's transitions is central to the ‘Youth, Citizenship and Social Change Research Programme’. The project ‘Taking Control’ aims to understand how young adults experience control and exercise personal agency as they pass through extended periods of transition in education and training, work, unemployment and in their personal lives in selected localities experiencing economic transformation in England and the new Germany. Through a combination of questionnaire survey and group interviews the study has investigated how, in different ways, choice and uncertainty can be important dimensions in young people's biographies in contemporary societies. Their experiences and their futures are not exclusively determined by socialising and structural influences, but also involve elements of subjectivity, choice and agency. The research contributes to understanding of the process involved in becoming ‘independent’ and ‘personally effective’ in different settings and has aimed to involve researchers and users (young people, policy-makers and practitioners) in debate about the most effective ways to support transitions in early adult life. While building on methodological approaches and findings of the author's previous Anglo-German research, this research is new and distinctive in its theme of control in the under researched ‘young adult’ phase (up to 25) and in the inclusion of the post communist society of eastern Germany in the selected localities.

A five-parameter logistic equation for investigating asymmetry of curvature in baroreflex studies

1999 ◽  
Vol 277 (2) ◽  
pp. R441-R454 ◽  
Author(s):  
James H. Ricketts ◽  
Geoffrey A. Head
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Logistic Model ◽  
Parameter Estimates ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Renal Sympathetic Nerve Activity ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Curve Fit ◽  
Resting Blood Pressure ◽  
Pass Through ◽  
Unexplained Variation

Baroreceptor reflex curves are usually analyzed using a symmetric four-parameter function. We wished to ascertain the validity of assuming symmetry in the baroreflex curve and also of constraining the curves to pass through the resting blood pressure and heart rate (HR) values. Therefore, we have investigated the suitability of a new five-parameter asymmetric logistic model for analysis of baroreflex curves from rabbits and dogs. The five-parameter model is an extension of the usual four-parameter model and reduces to that model when the fitted data are symmetrical. Using 30 data sets of blood pressure versus renal sympathetic nerve activity (RSNA) and HR from six conscious rabbits, we compared the five-parameter curves with the four-parameter model. We also tested the effect of forcing these baroreflex curves through the resting point. We found that the five-parameter model reduced the unexplained variation and gave small but important improvements to the estimates of plateaus for RSNA and HR and the HR gain. Although forcing the HR curves through the resting values had little effect, this procedure, when applied to RSNA, produced a worse curve fit by increasing the unexplained variation with alteration to most of the estimated curve parameters. The mean arterial pressure-HR baroreflex relationship from six conscious dogs was also analyzed and showed clear evidence of systematic asymmetry. We conclude that the asymmetric model is a valuable extension to the symmetric logistic model when examining baroreceptor reflexes, giving improved estimates of the parameters and a new approach to examining the mechanisms contributing to baroreflex curve asymmetry. Furthermore, forcing the curves through the resting value is a statistically questionable practice when analyzing RSNA, because it affects the parameter estimates.

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