| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH |
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Submitted on March 7, 2007
Accepted on May 1, 2007
Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EG, UK; School of Animal Biology, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia; Obesity and Metabolic Health Group, The Rowett Research Institute, Aberdeen, AB21 9SB, UK
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: ajf1005{at}cam.ac.uk.
In developed countries, the increasing incidence of obesity is a serious health problem. Leptin exposure in the perinatal period affects long-term regulation of appetite and energy expenditure, but control of leptin production in utero is unclear. This study investigated perirenal adipose (PAT) and placental leptin expression in ovine fetuses during late gestation and after manipulation of plasma glucocorticoid and thyroid hormone concentrations. Between 130 and 144d of gestation (term 145 ± 2d), plasma leptin and PAT leptin mRNA levels increased in association with increments in plasma cortisol and triiodothyronine. Fetal adrenalectomy prevented these developmental changes, and exposure of intact 130d fetuses to glucocorticoids, by cortisol infusion or maternal dexamethasone treatment, caused premature elevations in plasma leptin and PAT leptin gene expression. Fetal thyroidectomy increased plasma leptin and PAT leptin mRNA abundance, while intravenous triiodothyronine infusion to intact 130d fetuses had no effect on circulating or PAT leptin. Leptin mRNA expression was low in the ovine placenta. Therefore, in the sheep fetus, PAT appears to be a primary source of leptin in the circulation, and leptin gene expression is regulated by both glucocorticoids and thyroid hormones. Developmental changes in circulating and PAT leptin may mediate the maturational effects of cortisol in utero, and have long-term consequences for appetite regulation and the development of obesity.
This article has been cited by other articles:
 |
|
 |
|
  M. J. Zhu, B. Han, J. Tong, C. Ma, J. M. Kimzey, K. R. Underwood, Y. Xiao, B. W. Hess, S. P. Ford, P. W. Nathanielsz, et al. AMP-activated protein kinase signalling pathways are down regulated and skeletal muscle development impaired in fetuses of obese, over-nourished sheep J. Physiol., May 15, 2008; 586(10): 2651 - 2664. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
A. J. Forhead, C. A. Lamb, K. L. Franko, D. M. O'Connor, F. B. P. Wooding, R. L. Cripps, S. Ozanne, D. Blache, Q. W. Shen, M. Du, et al. Role of leptin in the regulation of growth and carbohydrate metabolism in the ovine fetus during late gestation J. Physiol., May 1, 2008; 586(9): 2393 - 2403. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH |
| Endocrinology | Endocrine Reviews | J. Clin. End. & Metab. |
| Molecular Endocrinology | Recent Prog. Horm. Res. | All Endocrine Journals |
