Mother's exercise during pregnancy programmes vasomotor function in adult offspring

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Physiology
• Developmental Programming
• Exercise Science

Background:

• Maternal behavior and the intrauterine environment influence offspring's lifelong health.
• Prenatal programming of atherosclerotic disease susceptibility is a growing concern.
• Understanding the impact of maternal lifestyle on offspring vascular health is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if maternal exercise during pregnancy improves endothelial function in porcine offspring.
• To test the hypothesis that maternal exercise positively impacts vascular health markers in offspring at 3, 5, and 9 months of age.

Main Methods:

• Pregnant sows underwent a daily exercise protocol (running 5 days/week) for most of gestation.
• Offspring vascular function was assessed using vasorelaxation studies with specific agents (bradykinin, sodium nitroprusside).
• Protein and gene expression related to vascular function (MYPT1, PPP1R14A, CPI-17) were analyzed.

Main Results:

• Maternal exercise significantly reduced offspring resting heart rate but did not affect gestational weight gain.
• Sodium nitroprusside-induced vasorelaxation was reduced in offspring from exercised mothers, indicating decreased vascular smooth muscle responsiveness.
• Maternal exercise altered protein expression of MYPT1 and PPP1R14A/CPI-17 in offspring femoral arteries.

Conclusions:

• Pregnant sows can adhere to a rigorous exercise regimen comparable to human recommendations.
• Gestational exercise significantly programs offspring vascular smooth muscle responsiveness, specifically decreasing responsiveness to nitric oxide donors.
• Prenatal exercise acts as a potent stimulus influencing the vascular development and function of adult offspring.