Table 1.
Summary of findings from NHP cohorts studying the effects of maternal WSD and obesity on third-trimester fetuses and juvenile offspring
| Findings | First author, year (ref.) |
|---|---|
| Placenta | |
| Increased cytokine production and decreased function; reduced uterine volume blood flow | Frias, 2011 (145) |
| Reduced mRNA expression of AMPKα, plasma membrane fatty acid binding protein, and fatty acid transporter | O’Tierney-Ginn, 2015 (146) |
| Plasma | |
| Increased n-6:n-3 ratio in fetal plasma; increased fetal hepatic apoptosis; lower levels of EPA and DHA in breast milk | Grant, 2011 (34) |
| Impact of maternal diet on the fetal metabolome | Cox, 2009 (147) |
| Maternal diet | |
| WSD and genomic variants resistant to weight gain | Harris, 2016 (148) |
| Impact of maternal resveratrol supplementation on placenta and fetal outcomes | Roberts, 2014 (149) |
| Microbiome | |
| Maternal gut microbial dysbiosis and diminished abundance of Campylobacter in juveniles switched to healthy diet at weaning | Ma, 2014 (44) |
| Modulations in the offspring gut microbiome refractory to postnatal symbiotic supplementation among juveniles | Pace, 2018 (150) |
| Liver | |
| Increased fetal hepatic inflammation, oxidative stress, and triglyceride accumulation | McCurdy, 2009 (32) |
| Altered fetal chromatin structure and disrupted H3 acetylation | Aagaard-Tillery, 2008 (33) |
| Disruption of circadian gene expression in fetal and juvenile liver | Suter, 2011 (151) |
| Decreased fetal SIRT1 histone and protein deacetylase activity | Suter, 2012 (152) |
| Decreased juvenile hepatic innervation; increased apoptosis and inflammation | Grant, 2012 (153) |
| Increased inflammation, triglycerides, and de novo lipid synthesis; dysregulated juvenile hepatic immune system | Thorn, 2014 (43) |
| Skeletal muscle/vascular function | |
| Fetal mitochondrial dysfunction and fatty acid oxidation in skeletal muscle | McCurdy, 2016 (56) |
| Endothelial dysfunction, elevated expression levels of vascular inflammation, and fibrinolytic function in juvenile aorta | Fan, 2013 (154) |
| Pancreas | |
| Reduced fetal/juvenile α-cell mass and increased β-cell:α-cell ratio | Comstock, 2012 (52) |
| Increased inflammatory cytokines and islet-associated macrophages | Nicol, 2013 (155) |
| Reduced fetal/juvenile islet vascularization and impaired sympathetic islet innervation | Pound, 2014 (54) |
| Brain | |
| Abnormalities in the fetal melanocortin system | Grayson, 2010 (60) |
| Perturbations in the fetal serotonergic system; increased anxiety (female infants) and increase aggression (male infants) | Sullivan, 2010 (156) |
| Overconsumption of palatable energy-dense diet in juveniles; reduced dopamine signaling in juveniles | Rivera, 2015 (59) |
| Altered peripheral and central serotonergic system and persistent anxiety and aggressive behaviors | Aagaard, 2016 (157) |
| Increased anxiety in juveniles; modified cortisol stress response and decreased serotonergic immunoreactivity | Thompson, 2017 (57) |
| Disturbances in body weight regulation; impairments in central melanocortin signaling | Sullivan, 2017 (158) |
DHA, docosahexaenoic acid; EPA, eicosapentaenoic acid.