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Maternal Photoperiodic Programming: Melatonin and Seasonal Synchronization Before Birth
Jayme van Dalum1, Vebjørn J Melum1, Shona H Wood1
1Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, UiT - the Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
Frontiers in Endocrinology
|January 31, 2020
Summary
Maternal photoperiodic programming (MPP) uses melatonin signals to prepare newborns for environmental conditions. This prenatal process influences lifelong growth, reproduction, and health in mammals.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive Biology
- Endocrinology
- Developmental Biology
Background:
- Mammals utilize environmental cues for optimal neonatal development.
- Melatonin, produced by the maternal pineal gland, acts as a transplacental signal for ambient photoperiod.
- This signaling pathway influences fetal development, particularly hypothalamic function.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the phenomenon of maternal photoperiodic programming (MPP).
- To summarize current knowledge of MPP mechanisms and their eco-evolutionary relevance.
- To highlight MPP's role in linking prenatal programming to lifelong health outcomes.
Main Methods:
- This mini-review synthesizes existing research on maternal photoperiodic programming.
- It examines the role of melatonin signaling via the fetal pituitary and hypothalamus.
- Focus is placed on the function of tanycytes in mediating these effects.
Main Results:
- Melatonin acts on the fetal pituitary, influencing the medio-basal hypothalamus.
- Specialized ependymal cells called tanycytes play a key role in this pathway.
- Tanycytes link melatonin signaling to hypothalamic thyroid metabolism and subsequent pup development.
Conclusions:
- Maternal photoperiodic programming is a crucial mechanism for aligning neonatal development with environmental conditions.
- MPP establishes a paradigm for understanding how in utero programming of hypothalamic function impacts mammalian growth, reproduction, and health.
- This process has significant implications for understanding health and disease across the lifespan.
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