The expression of chromosome 19 miRNA cluster members during insulin sensitivity changes in pregnancy.

Hypothesis: Declines in insulin sensitivity during pregnancy important for fetal growth are associated with impairments in skeletal muscle post-receptor insulin signaling. The primary initiator of these changes is unknown but believed to originate in the placenta. We hypothesize that placental miRNAs are associated with maternal sensitivity changes and impact insulin-sensitive mechanisms in target tissues in vitro.

Impact of high maternal body mass index on fetal cerebral cortical and cerebellar volumes.

Objectives: Maternal obesity increases a child's risk of neurodevelopmental impairment. However, little is known about the impact of maternal obesity on fetal brain development.

Methods: We prospectively recruited 20 healthy pregnant women across the range of pre-pregnancy or first-trimester body mass index (BMI) and performed fetal brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of their healthy singleton fetuses.

Neonatal body composition, salivary feeding gene expression, and feeding outcomes in infants of diabetic mothers.

Introduction: Infants of diabetic mothers (IDMs) may exhibit decreased oral intake, requiring nasogastric feedings and prolonged hospitalization. The objective of this study was to explore whether saliva serves as an informative biofluid for detecting expression of hunger signaling and energy homeostasis modulator genes and to perform exploratory analyses examining expression profiles, body composition, and feeding outcomes in late preterm and term IDMs and infants born to mothers with normoglycemia during pregnancy.

Methods: In this prospective cohort pilot study, infants born at ≥ 35 weeks' gestation to mothers with gestational or type II diabetes (IDM cohort) and normoglycemic mothers (control cohort) were recruited.

Paternal obesity decreases infant MSC mitochondrial functional capacity.

Besides the well-recognized influence of maternal health on fetal in utero development, recent epidemiological studies appoint paternal preconception metabolic health as a significant factor in shaping fetal metabolic programming and subsequently offspring metabolic health; however, mechanisms behind these adaptations remain confined to animal models. To elucidate the effects of paternal obesity (P-OB) on infant metabolism in humans, we examined mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), which give rise to infant tissue, remain involved in mature tissue maintenance, and resemble the phenotype of the offspring donor. Here, we assessed mitochondrial functional capacity, content, and insulin action in MSC from infants of fathers with overweight [body mass index (BMI: 25-30 kg/m); paternal overweight (P-OW)] or obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m; P-OB) while controlling for maternal intrauterine environment.

Food, nutrition, and autism: from soil to fork.

Food and nutrition-related factors have the potential to impact development of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and quality of life for people with ASD, but gaps in evidence exist. On 10 November 2022, Tufts University's Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy and Food and Nutrition Innovation Institute hosted a 1-d meeting to explore the evidence and evidence gaps regarding the relationships of food and nutrition with ASD. This meeting report summarizes the presentations and deliberations from the meeting.