Differential expression of lipid metabolic genes in hypercholesterolemic rabbit placenta predisposes the offspring to develop atherosclerosis in early adulthood.

Aims: Maternal hypercholesterolemia (MHC) is a pathological condition that may cause atherosclerosis in the adulthood of the offspring. The study aims to identify the role of in-utero programming by the placenta in atherogenesis and associated liver pathology in offspring.

Main Methods: Female New Zealand white rabbits with normal lipid profiles were fed a 0.

Maternal hypercholesterolemia during gestation is associated with elevated lipid levels of two-day-old neonates.

Maternal hypercholesterolemia (MHC) during pregnancy is associated with the risk of developing aortic lesions in fetuses. There is also a possibility of faster progression of atherosclerosis in offspring born to hypercholesterolemic mothers (HCM) during their adulthood. We investigated whether elevated maternal cholesterol levels during pregnancy influence the lipid levels in offspring.

Maternal cholesterol levels during gestation: boon or bane for the offspring?

An increase in cholesterol levels is perceived during pregnancy and is considered as a normal adaptive response to the development of the fetus. In some pregnancies, excessive increase in total cholesterol with high levels of Low-Density Lipoprotein leads to maladaptation by the fetus to cholesterol demands, resulting in a pathological condition termed as maternal hypercholesterolemia (MH). MH is considered clinically irrelevant and therefore cholesterol levels are not routinely checked during pregnancy, as a consequence of which there is scarce information on its global prevalence in pregnant women.