Leticia T Casarotto, Helen N Jones, Pascale Chavatte-Palmer, Geoffrey E Dahl
{"title":"Review: Placental physiology and fetal programming in ruminants under heat stress.","authors":"Leticia T Casarotto, Helen N Jones, Pascale Chavatte-Palmer, Geoffrey E Dahl","doi":"10.1093/biolre/ioaf047","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The placenta plays a crucial role in transferring nutrients and oxygen between the dam and fetus during pregnancy. It is highly influenced by environmental conditions, especially stressors such as heat and nutritional deficiencies, which can significantly impact the fetus's long-term health and development. Cattle, especially dairy cows, commonly experience stress during late gestation, which can lead to changes in behavior and physiology, affecting both subsequent milk production and fetal development. Heat stress is one of the most common stressors experienced by mammals, and recent evidence suggests a role in the programming of the dam and fetus. This review explores different hypotheses of fetal programming, including the Barker Hypothesis, which connects early-life malnutrition to metabolic diseases in adulthood, and the Silver-Spoon Hypothesis, which highlights the long-term benefits of optimal prenatal conditions. Furthermore, we consider heat stress programming as it relates to the concept of developmental origins of health and diseases (DOHaD). The DOHaD hypothesis suggests that epigenetic adaptations occur in fetal DNA as a response to environmental influences. The review also emphasizes the role of the mechanism associated with possible epigenetic effects in the placenta, mediating the effects of maternal stress on the fetus, impacting gene expression, placental structure, and nutrient transfer. Understanding these mechanisms is essential for enhancing dairy cattle management and minimizing the adverse effects of environmental stressors on animal health and productivity.</p>","PeriodicalId":8965,"journal":{"name":"Biology of Reproduction","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1000,"publicationDate":"2025-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Biology of Reproduction","FirstCategoryId":"99","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1093/biolre/ioaf047","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The placenta plays a crucial role in transferring nutrients and oxygen between the dam and fetus during pregnancy. It is highly influenced by environmental conditions, especially stressors such as heat and nutritional deficiencies, which can significantly impact the fetus's long-term health and development. Cattle, especially dairy cows, commonly experience stress during late gestation, which can lead to changes in behavior and physiology, affecting both subsequent milk production and fetal development. Heat stress is one of the most common stressors experienced by mammals, and recent evidence suggests a role in the programming of the dam and fetus. This review explores different hypotheses of fetal programming, including the Barker Hypothesis, which connects early-life malnutrition to metabolic diseases in adulthood, and the Silver-Spoon Hypothesis, which highlights the long-term benefits of optimal prenatal conditions. Furthermore, we consider heat stress programming as it relates to the concept of developmental origins of health and diseases (DOHaD). The DOHaD hypothesis suggests that epigenetic adaptations occur in fetal DNA as a response to environmental influences. The review also emphasizes the role of the mechanism associated with possible epigenetic effects in the placenta, mediating the effects of maternal stress on the fetus, impacting gene expression, placental structure, and nutrient transfer. Understanding these mechanisms is essential for enhancing dairy cattle management and minimizing the adverse effects of environmental stressors on animal health and productivity.
期刊介绍:
Biology of Reproduction (BOR) is the official journal of the Society for the Study of Reproduction and publishes original research on a broad range of topics in the field of reproductive biology, as well as reviews on topics of current importance or controversy. BOR is consistently one of the most highly cited journals publishing original research in the field of reproductive biology.