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Obesity and Maternal-Placental-Fetal Immunology and Health

Meredith Monaco-Brown1, David A Lawrence2,3

  • 1Department of Pediatrics, Bernard and Millie Duker Children's Hospital at Albany Medical Center, Albany, NY, United States.

Frontiers in Pediatrics
|May 16, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Maternal obesity and environmental chemicals disrupt placental immunology, impacting pregnancy outcomes and infant health. This review explores these immune alterations and their links to various neonatal and maternal conditions.

Area of Science:

  • Reproductive immunology
  • Environmental health
  • Perinatal medicine

Background:

  • Rising obesity rates in women of childbearing age (29%) are linked to oxidative stress and inflammation.
  • Maternal obesity is associated with placental dysfunction, leading to adverse birth outcomes like large for gestational age (LGA) infants and increased neonatal metabolic disease.
  • Environmental exposures to endocrine-disrupting and persistent chemicals exacerbate obesity and negatively affect maternal physiology, placental function, and fetal development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the scientific literature on how maternal obesity and environmental chemical exposures alter maternal, placental, and fetal immunology.
  • To examine the intricate relationship between placental immune function and clinical outcomes, including neonatal conditions and maternal health.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic review of existing literature on maternal obesity, environmental chemicals, and placental immunology.
  • Analysis of studies investigating placental immune cells (e.g., macrophages, NK cells) and inflammatory mediators (cytokines).

Main Results:

  • Maternal obesity and environmental chemicals significantly alter placental immune cell populations and cytokine profiles.
  • These immunological changes are associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preeclampsia, preterm birth, and fetal growth restrictions.
  • Placental immune dysregulation is linked to a spectrum of neonatal and post-natal conditions, including allergies, metabolic disorders, and neurodevelopmental issues.

Conclusions:

  • Maternal obesity and environmental exposures represent critical modulators of placental immunology.
  • Understanding these immunomodulatory effects is crucial for improving pregnancy outcomes and addressing long-term infant and maternal health challenges.
  • Further research into placental immune function can inform targeted interventions for high-risk pregnancies.

Keywords:
Th cellsinflammationmacrophagesmaternal obesityoxidative stressplacentatrophoblasts

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