Association Between Smoking and Hypertension in Pregnancy Among Japanese Women: A Meta-analysis of Birth Cohort Studies in the Japan Birth Cohort Consortium (JBiCC) and JECS.

Background: Recent literature suggest the effect of maternal smoking on risk of hypertensive disorders in pregnancy (HDP) and preeclampsia may differ by ethnicity; however, studies on Asians are limited.

Methods: We investigated the association of maternal smoking with HDP and preeclampsia using a common analysis protocol to analyze the association in six birth cohorts participating in a Japanese consortium of birth cohorts (JBiCC). Results were compared with-published results from cohorts not included in this consortium, and, where possible, we produced a meta-analysis including these studies.

Gene-environment interactions related to maternal exposure to environmental and lifestyle-related chemicals during pregnancy and the resulting adverse fetal growth: a review.

Background: There are only limited numbers of reviews on the association of maternal-child genetic polymorphisms and environmental and lifestyle-related chemical exposure during pregnancy with adverse fetal growth. Thus, this article aims to review: (1) the effect of associations between the above highlighted factors on adverse fetal growth and (2) recent birth cohort studies regarding environmental health risks.

Methods: Based on a search of the PubMed database through August 2021, 68 epidemiological studies on gene-environment interactions, focusing on the association between environmental and lifestyle-related chemical exposure and adverse fetal growth was identified.

Relationships between maternal perfluoroalkyl substance levels, polymorphisms of receptor genes, and adverse birth outcomes in the Hokkaido birth cohort study, Japan.

We assessed the associations between perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) levels in third trimester maternal serum, the maternal genotypes of genes encoding nuclear receptors, and birth outcomes. We studied a prospective birth cohort of healthy pregnant Japanese women (n = 372) recruited in Sapporo between July 2002 and October 2005. We analyzed PFOS and PFOA levels using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and analyzed 13 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of proliferator-activated receptor alpha, gamma, gamma coactivator 1A, delta, constitutive androstane receptor, liver X receptor alpha, and beta (LXRB) using real-time polymerase reaction (PCR).

Associations between maternal mono-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate levels, nuclear receptor gene polymorphisms, and fatty acid levels in pregnant Japanese women in the Hokkaido study.

We assessed how the interaction between mono-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (MEHP) in maternal sera and the maternal genotypes associated with nuclear receptors affect fatty acid levels in a prospective birth cohort study of pregnant Japanese individuals (n = 437) recruited in Sapporo between 2002 and 2005. We analyzed MEHP and fatty acids using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Thirteen single nucleotide polymorphisms of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) alpha, PPAR gamma (PPARG), PPARG coactivator 1A (PPARGC1A), PPAR delta, constitutive androstane receptor, liver X receptor (LXR) alpha, and LXR beta (LXRB) were analyzed using real-time PCR.

Associations among maternal perfluoroalkyl substance levels, fetal sex-hormone enzymatic gene polymorphisms, and fetal sex hormone levels in the Hokkaido study.

Prenatal sex hormones affect fetal growth; for example, prenatal exposure to low levels of androgen accelerates female puberty onset. We assessed the association of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in maternal sera and infant genotypes of genes encoding enzymes involved in sex steroid hormone biosynthesis on cord sera sex hormone levels in a prospective birth cohort study of healthy pregnant Japanese women (n = 224) recruited in Sapporo between July 2002 and October 2005. We analyzed PFAS and five sex hormone levels using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

Associations among perfluorooctanesulfonic/perfluorooctanoic acid levels, nuclear receptor gene polymorphisms, and lipid levels in pregnant women in the Hokkaido study.

The effect of interactions between perfluorooctanesulfonic (PFOS)/perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) levels and nuclear receptor genotypes on fatty acid (FA) levels, including those of triglycerides, is not clear understood. Therefore, in the present study, we aimed to analyse the association of PFOS/PFOA levels and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in nuclear receptors with FA levels in pregnant women. We analysed 504 mothers in a birth cohort between 2002 and 2005 in Japan.

Haemodynamic benefit of bridging use of bosentan prior to pulmonary endarterectomy.

Objectives: Some patients present with excessive pulmonary hypertension (PH) prior to pulmonary endarterectomy (PEA) for chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH). This study was performed to evaluate the clinical role of pretreatment before PEA in CTEPH patients.

Methods: A total of 370 patients with CTEPH undergoing first PEA between 2003 and 2017 were divided into those receiving pretreatment with bosentan (group B: n = 119) and those without targeted pretreatment for PH (group C: n = 251).

Surgical Thoracoabdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair in a Non-High-Volume Institution.

Background: Surgical thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm (TAAA) repair remains challenging. Apart from mortality, spinal cord injury (SCI) is a dreaded complication. We analyzed our experience to identify predictors for SCI in a nonhigh-volume institution.

Association of exposure to prenatal phthalate esters and bisphenol A and polymorphisms in the ESR1 gene with the second to fourth digit ratio in school-aged children: Data from the Hokkaido study.

Phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA) are estrogenic endocrine disruptors. Polymorphisms in the gene encoding estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1) may contribute to the ratio of the lengths of the second and fourth digits (2D:4D), which is considered an index of prenatal exposure to sex hormones. Thus, we investigated whether ESR1 polymorphisms modify the effects of prenatal exposure to phthalates and BPA on 2D:4D in a birth cohort.

Dose-dependent associations between prenatal caffeine consumption and small for gestational age, preterm birth, and reduced birthweight in the Japan Environment and Children's Study.

Background: Few previous studies have investigated the association between prenatal caffeine intake and birth size (small for gestational age [SGA], preterm birth, and birthweight Z-score) in Japan.

Objectives: We examined the dose-dependency of this association (prenatal caffeine consumption and birth size) as part of the Japan Environment and Children's Study.

Methods: A prospective birth cohort included 94 876 fetuses in Japan.

Association between maternal passive smoking and increased risk of delivering small-for-gestational-age infants at full-term using plasma cotinine levels from The Hokkaido Study: a prospective birth cohort.

Objectives: To investigate the association between plasma cotinine level measured at the 8th gestational month and the delivery of small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infants, using a highly sensitive ELISA method.

Design: Prospective birth cohort study from The Hokkaido Study on Environment and Children's Health.

Setting: Hokkaido, Japan.

Association between ESR1 polymorphisms and second to fourth digit ratio in school-aged children in the Hokkaido Study.

The ratio of the lengths of the 2nd and 4th digits (2D:4D) is considered an index of prenatal exposure to androgen. Indeed, androgen receptors have been linked to digit length, but estrogen receptors are rarely investigated in this context. Thus, we investigated the association between estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1) genetic polymorphisms and 2D:4D in school-aged children.

Aortic annulus does not dilate over time after aortic root remodeling with or without annuloplasty.

Objective: The lack of annular stabilization is the drawback of aortic root remodeling, and recently the addition of annuloplasty has been proposed. Limited data, however, exist on late annular size after remodeling. We studied annular size over time.

Modification of adverse health effects of maternal active and passive smoking by genetic susceptibility: Dose-dependent association of plasma cotinine with infant birth size among Japanese women-The Hokkaido Study.

Objectives: We aimed to assess the individual dose-response effects of eight maternal polymorphisms encoding polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-metabolizing and DNA-repair genes on prenatal cotinine levels according to infant birth size.

Methods: In total, 3263 Japanese pregnant women were assigned to five groups based on plasma cotinine levels during the 8th month of pregnancy, as measured using ELISA (cut-offs: 0.21, 0.

Gender-specific association of exposure to non-dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls during pregnancy with methylation levels of H19 and long interspersed nuclear element-1 in cord blood in the Hokkaido study.

Background: Associations between prenatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and reduced birth-size, and between DNA methylation of insulin-like growth factor-2 (IGF-2), H19 locus, and long interspersed nuclear element-1 (LINE-1) and reduced birth-size are well established. To date, however, studies on the associations between prenatal exposure to PCBs and alterations in methylation of IGF-2, H19, and LINE-1 are lacking. Thus, in this study, we examined these associations with infant-gender stratification.

Association of prenatal passive smoking and metabolic gene polymorphisms with child growth from birth to 3years of age in the Hokkaido Birth Cohort Study on Environment and Children's Health.

Although the effects of prenatal passive smoking on birth weight have been reported, the effects of metabolic gene polymorphisms on passive smoking have not been studied. Therefore, we investigated the effects of maternal passive smoking and metabolic gene polymorphisms on child growth up to 3years of age using cotinine as a biomarker. We included 1356 Japanese participants in a prospective cohort between 2003 and 2007 (cotinine levels at the third trimester≤0.

Interaction between maternal caffeine intake during pregnancy and CYP1A2 C164A polymorphism affects infant birth size in the Hokkaido study.

BackgroundCaffeine, 1,3,7-trimethylxanthine, is widely consumed by women of reproductive age. Although caffeine has been proposed to inhibit fetal growth, previous studies on the effects of caffeine on infant birth size have yielded inconsistent findings. This inconsistency may result from failure to account for individual differences in caffeine metabolism related to polymorphisms in the gene for CYP1A2, the major caffeine-metabolizing enzyme.

[Overview of Longitudinal Survey of Newborns in the 21st Century: Factors Affecting Infant Growth].

There are two major nationwide birth cohort studies in Japan, namely, the Longitudinal Survey of Newborns in the 21st Century conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) and the Japan Environment and Children's Study (JECS) conducted by the Ministry of Environment. The former was a longitudinal questionnaire survey focusing on environmental and socioeconomic factors for descriptive epidemiology conducted every year since 2001 by mail. The latter was based on 15 unit centers nationwide with environmental measurements and collection of biological samples for environmental risk evaluation.

Dioxin-metabolizing genes in relation to effects of prenatal dioxin levels and reduced birth size: The Hokkaido study.

Objectives: We investigated the effects of maternal polymorphisms in 3 genes encoding dioxin-metabolizing enzymes in relation to prenatal dioxin levels on infant birth size in Japan.

Methods: We examined the relationship between dioxin exposure and birth size in relation to the polymorphisms in the genes encoding aromatic hydrocarbon receptor (AHR [G>A, Arg554Lys]), cytochrome P450 (CYP) 1A1 (T6235C), and glutathione S-transferase mu 1 (GSTM1; Non-null/null) in 421 participants using multiple linear regression models.

Results: In mothers carrying the GSTM1 null genotype, a ten-fold increase in total dioxin toxic equivalency was correlated with a decrease in birth weight of -345g (95% confidence interval: -584, -105).

[Molecular Mechanism of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD)].

Epigenetic modification takes place in many types of environment. Undesirable epigenetic changes for the postnatal life at the developmental stage are induced in utero by exposure to harsh environment such as endocrine disruptors, severe psychological stress and insufficient or excessive nutrition. Some of these changes continues even for a long time after birth from womb to tomb.

Evaluation of the Japanese Metabolic Syndrome Risk Score (JAMRISC): a newly developed questionnaire used as a screening tool for diagnosing metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance in Japan.

Objectives: To prevent the onset of lifestyle-related diseases associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS) in Japan, research into the development of a useful screening method is strongly desired. We developed a new screening questionnaire (JAMRISC) utilizing a logistic regression model and evaluated its ability to predict the development of MetS, type 2 diabetes and other lifestyle-related diseases in Japanese populace.

Methods: JAMRISC questionnaire was sent to 1,850 individuals in Rumoi, a small city in Hokkaido.

Combined effects of AHR, CYP1A1, and XRCC1 genotypes and prenatal maternal smoking on infant birth size: Biomarker assessment in the Hokkaido Study.

Objectives: We investigated the individual and combined effects of maternal polymorphisms encoding the aromatic hydrocarbon receptor (AHR; rs2066853), cytochrome P450 (CYP) 1A1 (rs1048963), and the X-ray-complementing gene 1 (XRCC1; rs1799782) and prenatal smoking in relation to infant birth size.

Methods: Totally, 3263 participants (1998 non-smokers and 1265 smokers) were included in the study between 2003 and 2007. Two groups of mothers were distinguished by plasma cotinine levels by ELISA measured during the third trimester (cut-off=11.

[Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) and Epidemiology].

Japan has the highest proportion of low-birth-weight infants among OECD countries for over 20 years. In 2011, the proportion of low-birth-weight infants in Japan was 9.6%, whereas the mean proportion in OECD countries was only 6.