Parental obesity-induced changes in developmental programming

Late-in-life Exercise Ameliorates the Aging Trajectory Metabolism Programmed by Maternal Obesity in Rats: It is Never Too Late

BACKGROUND

Maternal obesity (MO) has been shown to adversely affect metabolic, oxidative, reproductive, and cognitive function in offspring. However, it is unclear whether lifestyle modification can ameliorate the metabolic and organ dysfunction programmed by MO and prevent the effects of metabolic syndrome in adulthood. This study aimed to evaluate whether moderate voluntary exercise in the offspring of rats born to obese mothers can ameliorate the adverse effects of MO programming on metabolism and liver function in mid-adulthood.

METHODS

Offspring of control (CF1) and MOF1 mothers were fed with a control diet from weaning. Adult males and females participated in 15 min exercise sessions five days/week. Metabolic parameters were analyzed before and after the exercise intervention. Liver oxidative stress biomarkers and antioxidant enzymes were analyzed before and after the intervention.

RESULTS

Males showed that CF1ex ran more than MOF1ex and increased the distance covered. In contrast, females in both groups ran similar distances and remained constant but ran more distance than males. At PND 300 and 450, male and female MOF1 had higher leptin, triglycerides, insulin, and HOMA-IR levels than CF1. However, male MOF1ex had lower triglycerides, insulin, and HOMA-IR levels than MOF1. Improvements in liver fat and antioxidant enzymes were observed in CF1ex and MOF1ex males and females compared to their respective CF1 and MOF1 groups.

CONCLUSION

These findings suggest that moderate voluntary exercise, even when started in mid-adulthood, can improve metabolic outcomes and delay accelerated metabolic aging in MO-programmed rats in a sex-dependent manner.

Maternal hypertensive condition alters adipose tissue function and blood pressure sensitivity in offspring

Preeclampsia (PE) is characterized by hypertension, proteinuria, and fetal growth restriction during pregnancy, suggesting that the preeclamptic intrauterine environment may affect the growth and health of the offspring. This study aimed to how maternal hypertension affects male offspring growth, focusing on lipid metabolism and blood pressure in mice. Female mice were infused with angiotensin II (Ang II) on gestational day 12. Dysregulation and accumulation of lipid were observed in the placenta of Ang II-induced maternal hypertensive dams, associating with fetal growth restriction. Ang II-offspring showed lower birth weight than in the control-offspring. Isolated and differentiated adipocyte from neonatal mice of Ang II-dams showed higher Pparγ mRNA expression compared with the control group. Lower body weight tendency had continued in Ang II-offspring during long period, body weight of Ang II-offspring caught up the control-offspring at 16 weeks of age. The adipose tissue of Ang II-offspring in adult also showed higher Pparγ mRNA expression with the accumulation of neutrophils and inflammatory monocytes than in those control. In addition, Ang II-offspring had higher basal blood pressure and higher sensitivity to hypertensive stimuli than in the control-offspring. Taken together, maternal hypertension induced by Ang II changes placental function, causing a lower birth weight. These changes in the intrauterine environment may affect adipocyte function and blood pressure of offspring after growth.

MASLD co-aggregates with HCC in families-names change, fa(c)ts remain

My invited commentary discusses a recent paper published by Ebrahimi et al. [28 ]. To this end, the definitions of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), and the most recently proposed metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) are reviewed. For brevity, the overarching definition of metabolic fatty liver syndromes (MFLS) is utilized to allude to NAFLD/MAFLD/MASLD collectively, although each nomenclature identifies different diagnostic criteria and identifies distinct patient populations. Ebrahimi and colleagues conducted an analysis using data from the National Swedish Multigeneration archive, involving 38,018 MASLD first-degree relatives (FDRs) and 9,381 MASLD spouses, alongside 197,303 comparator FDRs and 47,572 comparator spouses. They followed these groups for a median of 17.6 years and reported a definite familial aggregation of adverse liver-related events among families of MASLD individuals. These events comprise increased relative risks of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), major chronic liver disease, and mortality owing to hepatic causes. I comment on this study with reference to the ongoing changes in terminology describing MFLS and to sexual dimorphism exhibited by MFLS. It is concluded that the study by Ebrahimi adds another piece to the puzzle of knowledge requested to implement those precision medicine approaches that are eagerly awaited in the field of MFLS.