Developmental programming by maternal obesity: Lessons from animal models

Area of Science:

• Reproductive biology
• Developmental biology
• Metabolic disease research

Background:

• Increasing maternal obesity and gestational diabetes rates pose risks for offspring health.
• Developmental programming links maternal metabolic status to adult-onset chronic diseases in offspring.
• Human studies face limitations in causality and mechanistic insights, necessitating animal models.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review animal model evidence on developmental origins of health and disease (DOHaD).
• To highlight maternal factors, critical windows, sexual dimorphism, and molecular mechanisms in developmental programming.
• To explore interventions for preventing adverse offspring outcomes in high-risk pregnancies.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on animal models of maternal obesity and/or gestational diabetes.
• Analysis of studies investigating developmental programming and offspring health outcomes.
• Evaluation of research on interventions such as antioxidant supplementation, exercise, and metformin.

Main Results:

• Animal models provide crucial insights into maternal influences on offspring's long-term health.
• Identified critical developmental periods and sex-specific effects in programming.
• Demonstrated the potential of interventions to mitigate adverse programming effects.

Conclusions:

• Animal models are essential for understanding DOHaD and identifying causality.
• Interventions tested in animal models show promise for clinical application in preventing offspring metabolic diseases.
• Further research using animal models can guide strategies for healthier pregnancies and offspring outcomes.