Parental high-fat programming of offspring development, health and β-cells

Recent studies extend the concept of developmental and adaptive plasticity to include a paternal role in the programming of metabolic disease, including diabetes. Parents greatly influence the development and health of their offspring. Although genetic imprinting plays a major role in determining offspring health outcomes, non-genetic transmission is also a critical determinant. Programming by parental high-fat feeding has demonstrated adverse effects on β-cell development and function in offspring. However, maternal and paternal programming effects vary in their potency, with mothers holding the greater influence due to their direct involvement in offspring development and health. Maintenance of parental health pre-conception and during the early phases of offspring life is critical to improve health outcomes of offspring, with the benefit of positive effects on parental health. Preservation and protection of β-cells throughout offspring life, even before conception, is a strategy to enhance β-cell survival in offspring.