Figure 3.

A: Human MSCs from the umbilical cord of infants born to obese mothers exhibit greater potential for adipogenesis. In undifferentiated cells, glycogen synthase kinase 3β activation was higher, including less nuclear content of β-catenin and increased PPARγ protein. Greater lipid content was positively correlated with infant percent fat mass. B: Human umbilical cord–derived MSCs from infants born to obese mothers demonstrate decreases in energy-sensing pathways, AMP kinase (AMPK), acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC), and carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT) in differentiated myocytes. Increased methylation of specific genes (indicated by stars) was found, affecting mitochondrial transport and fatty acid oxidation in infants with increased percent fat mass at birth. ASM, acid-soluble metabolites; β-OX, β-oxidation; ETS, electron transport system. Reprinted with permission from Boyle et al. (81).