Search results for "Offspring"
showing 10 items of 395 documents
Female obesity: short- and long-term consequences on the offspring
2013
The worldwide prevalence of obesity has risen over the past few decades and women are currently more likely than ever to enter pregnancy obese. Pre-pregnancy obesity and excessive gestational weight gain increase miscarriage rates and obstetric and neonatal complications, which result in a lower healthy live birth rate. In addition to its negative consequences for the mother, obesity has been shown to be an important risk factor for chronic illnesses, such as cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes in the adolescence and adulthood of the offspring. Moreover, maternal obesity causes psychological problems, physical disabilities and higher healthcare costs. Fetal progra…
Prenatal testosterone of progenitors could be involved in the etiology of both anorexia nervosa and autism spectrum disorders of their offspring
2014
Objectives High intrauterine testosterone (T) levels seem to play a role in the development of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), but their role in anorexia nervosa (AN) is controversial. Parents with masculinized 2D:4D ratios, a marker of the organizational effects of T, may have other relevant biological characteristics, in particular exposing their offspring to high T levels in the prenatal environment. This would increase the likelihood of their offspring developing these disorders. Methods The present study examined whether parents of offspring with AN (n=34; mean age= 51) and ASD (n=36; mean age=45) differ from control parents (n=40; mean age=43) in 2D:4D ratio, as well as by salivary …
Emotional intelligence modulates cortisol awakening response and self-reported health in caregivers of people with autism spectrum disorders
2014
Abstract Caring for people with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) has negative consequences for caregivers’ health. Specifically, caregivers of people with ASDs have been observed to have more somatic symptoms, poorer self-perceived general health, poorer social functioning and altered immune and endocrine systems. Various positive variables including emotional intelligence (EI) have been found to protect health in several populations, but no studies have previously analyzed the effect of EI in caregivers of people with ASDs. The present study aimed to analyze the association of the three components of EI (attention, clarity and repair) with self-reported health and cortisol awakening respon…
Bisphenol A Effects on the Growing Mouse Oocyte Are Influenced by Diet1
2009
Growing evidence suggests that exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) has the ability to disrupt several different stages of oocyte development. To date, most attention has focused on the effects of BPA on the periovulatory oocyte, and considerable variation is evident in the results of these studies. In our own laboratory, variation in the results of BPA studies conducted at different times appeared to correlate with changes in mill dates of animal feed. This observation, coupled with reports by others that dietary estrogens in feed are a confounding variable in studies of endocrine-disrupting chemicals, prompted us to evaluate the effect of diet on the results of BPA studies of the periovulatory o…
The effects of experimentally manipulated yolk androgens on growth and immune function of male and female nestling collared flycatchers Ficedula albi…
2009
Hormone-mediated maternal effects may be an important mechanism for adjusting offspring phenotype to particular requirements of the environment. We manipulated the levels of testosterone and androstenedione in the yolk of collared flycatcher Ficedula albicollis eggs to investigate the effects of pre-natal exposure to androgens on growth and immune function. Androgen treatment tended to reduce the growth of males, and enhance the growth of females, as indicated by significant interaction between sex and androgen treatment. Cellular immune function was not affected by androgen treatment or sex. Survival of nestlings until fledging was not related to androgen treatment. Our results indicate th…
How amniotic fluid shapes early odor-guided responses to colostrum and milk (and more)
2016
Revue; Among the multiple transitions that characterize mammalian development, birth certainly is the most abrupt and spectacular. It is also the most challenging for newborns when one considers their high mortality rates in any mammalian species. Although evolution has selected newborn organisms that possess the physiological and behavioral keys leading to adapt to this harsh psychobiological challenge, their capabilities cannot be considered separately from the maternal organism and the environment she creates. Mammalian females provide indeed passive (physiological) and/or active (behavioral) assistance to complement and boost their offspring’s capacities. One notable strategy of mammali…
Genetic and potential non-genetic benefits increase offspring fitness of polyandrous females in non- resource based mating system
2010
Background: The adaptive significance of female polyandry is currently under considerable debate. In non-resource based mating systems, indirect, i.e. genetic benefits have been proposed to be responsible for the fitness gain from polyandry. We studied the benefits of polyandry in the Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) using an experimental design in which the material investments by the sires and maternal environmental effects were controlled. Results: Embryonic mortality showed a strong paternal genetic component, and it was lower in polyandrously fertilized offspring (sperm competition of two males) than in monandrous fertilizations. We also found that high sperm velocity was associated w…
Motor Transitions' Peculiarity of Heterozygous DAT Rats When Offspring of an Unconventional KOxWT Mating.
2020
Abstract Causal factors of psychiatric diseases are unclear, due to gene × environment interactions. Evaluation of consequences, after a dopamine-transporter (DAT) gene knock-out (DAT-KO), has enhanced our understanding into the pathological dynamics of several brain disorders, such as Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity and Bipolar-Affective disorders. Recently, our attention has shifted to DAT hypo-functional (heterozygous, HET) rodents: HET dams display less maternal care and HET females display marked hypo-locomotion if cared by HET dams (Mariano et al., 2019). We assessed phenotypes of male DAT-heterozygous rats as a function of their parents: we compared “maternal” origin (MAT-HET, obtain…
When earwig mothers do not care to share: Parent–offspring competition and the evolution of family life
2017
Kin competition often reduces – and sometimes entirely negates – the benefits of cooperation among family members. Surprisingly, the impact of kin competition on the fitness effects of family life only received close scrutiny in studies on sibling rivalry, whereas the possibility of parent–offspring competition has attracted much less attention. As a consequence, it remains unclear whether and how parent–offspring competition could have affected the early evolution of parental care and family life. Here, we examined the occurrence and consequences of parent–offspring competition over food access in the European earwig Forficula auricularia, an insect with facultative family life reminiscent…
Environmental Enrichment During Adolescence Mitigates Cognitive Deficits and Alcohol Vulnerability due to Continuous and Intermittent Perinatal Alcoh…
2020
Perinatal alcohol exposure affects ontogenic neurodevelopment, causing physical and functional long-term abnormalities with limited treatment options. This study investigated long-term consequences of continuous and intermittent maternal alcohol drinking on behavioral readouts of cognitive function and alcohol vulnerability in the offspring. The effects of environmental enrichment (EE) during adolescence were also evaluated. Female rats underwent continuous alcohol drinking (CAD)—or intermittent alcohol drinking paradigm (IAD), along pregestation, gestation, and lactation periods—equivalent to the whole gestational period in humans. Male offspring were reared in standard conditions or EE un…