Cover -- Half-title -- Title -- Copyright -- Contents -- Contributors -- Preface -- Chapter 1 Introduction -- Chapter 2 The maternal and placental origins of chronic disease -- Introduction -- Measurements of placental size and shape that reflect its function -- Placental shape -- Placental enlargement -- Placental efficiency -- Maternal influences on placental size and shape -- Changing lifestyle during Ramadan -- The Dutch famine -- Maternalplacental programming -- Blood pressure -- Hypertension in adults -- Blood pressure in children -- Coronary heart disease -- Chronic heart failure -- Lung cancer -- Sex differences in placental growth and programming -- Sex differences in placental growth -- Sex differences in placental programming -- Conclusions -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 3 Pre-and periconceptual health and the HPA axis: Nutrition and stress -- Introduction -- Growth -- Delivery of nutrients to the conceptus -- Metabolic anticipation -- Stress -- Glucocorticoids -- Arginine vasopressin -- Epigenesis -- Assisted reproductive technologies -- Stressed gametes, zygote and embryo -- Obesity -- Adolescence -- Conditionally essential amino acids -- Arginine -- Glycine -- Summary and conclusion -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 4 Nutrition and preimplantation development -- Introduction -- The pre-conception period and developmental programming -- Environmental sensitivity of the preimplantation embryo in culture -- An epigenetic contribution to developmental programming following IVC? -- Maternal nutrition and early embryo developmental programming -- Early embryo developmental programming: the search for mechanisms -- The role of the extraembryonic lineages in preimplantation responses to poor maternal diet -- A human perspective -- Conclusion -- Acknowledgements -- References -- Discussion.

Chapter 5 Maternofetal transport pathways during embryogenesis and organogenesis -- Introduction -- The decidua -- The early human placenta -- The placental adnexae -- Conclusion -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 6 Imprinted genes and placental growth: Implications for the developmental origins of health and disease -- Introduction -- Genomic imprinting and imprinted genes in the placenta -- Multiple imprinted genes act as rheostats for placental growth -- Igf2 -- Ascl2 -- Phlda2 -- Cdkn1c -- Igf2r -- Grb10/Meg1 -- Peg1/Mest -- Peg3 -- Peg10 and Peg11 -- Plagl1/Zac1/LOT1 -- Esx1 -- Cited1 -- Altered expression of imprinted and non-imprinted genes in human intrauterine growth restriction -- Manipulating imprinted and non-imprinted genes in mice to create models for DOHAD -- The Igf2P0+/- model [6] -- The Phlda2 overexpression model [15,16] -- The Cited1 model [75] -- The Esx1 model [74] -- Mouse models of IUGR involving non-imprinted genes -- Conclusion and future directions -- Acknowledgments -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 7 Genomic imprinting: Epigenetic control and potential roles in the developmental origins of postnatal health and disease -- Introduction -- Imprinted genes are required for successful development of both the embryo and extraembryonic tissues -- Mechanisms of imprinting control -- DNA methylation -- Histone modifications -- Non-coding RNA -- Epigenetic reprogramming -- Preimplantation epigenetic reprogramming -- Nutritional availability around conception can affect adult phenotype -- Animal studies of peri-implantation developmental programming -- Epigenetic reprogramming in primordial germ cells -- Imprinted genes play key roles in prenatal growth and development, in postnatal metabolism and in the regulation of energy balance, rendering them candidates for developmental programming.

Imprinted genes directly modulate fetal growth and affect fetal nutrient supply through placental development and function -- Imprinted genes affect fetal nutrient supply through alteration of maternal behaviour and resource mobilization -- Imprinted genes affect the in utero development of key metabolic organs and the function of postnatal metabolic axes -- Imprinted genes are clearly important for the growth and development of muscle, as many genetic models show severe and contrasting phenotypes -- White adipose tissue is an important endocrine organ in addition to being an energy store. Imprinted genes are critical for white adipose tissue development -- Imprinted genes are critical for brown adipose tissue development -- Imprinted genes are crucial for the proliferation and maturation of the insulin secreting -cells of the pancreas -- Imprinted genes in brain development and the central control of metabolic axes -- Conclusion -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 8 Trophoblast invasion and uterine artery remodelling in primates -- Introduction: implantation and placentation in primates -- Maternal placental perfusion, trophoblast invasion and decidual erosion -- Endovascular trophoblast invasion and spiral artery remodelling -- Potential advantages of increased invasion depth -- Conclusion -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 9 The role of the maternal immune response in fetal programming -- Trophoblast and the maternofetal boundary -- Clinical implications of abnormal trophobast invasion -- Immunology of pregnancy -- Trophoblast HLA molecules -- Decidualization -- Uterine mucosal lymphocytes -- Uterine NK cells (uNK cells) -- NK cell receptors -- KIR and HLA-C -- Maternal KIR and fetal HLA-C genes and reproductive success -- Polymorphic genes and reproduction -- Conclusion -- References -- Discussion.

Chapter 10 Clinical causes and aspects of placental insufficiency -- Introduction -- Clinical relevance of intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) -- Placental weight and surface -- Transfer of oxygen and nutrients in placental insufficiency -- From adaptation to failure -- Acknowledgements -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 11 Uterine blood flow as a determinant of fetoplacental development -- Introduction -- Early studies -- Population variation in the effect of altitude on birth weight -- Uterine oxygen delivery in European versus. Andean high-altitude residents -- Arterial oxygen content -- Uterine artery blood flow -- Vasoactive, angiogenic and other mediators -- Influence of genetic factors on UA blood flow and birth weight at high altitude -- Surname analyses -- Gene marker studies -- Identification of genetic factors -- Does greater UA blood flow improve fetal oxygenation? -- UA blood flow and fetal growth -- Relationship between uterine oxygen delivery and fetoplacental oxygen consumption -- Summary and conclusion -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 12 Placental amino acid transporters: The critical link between maternal nutrition and fetal programming? -- Introduction -- Amino acid availabilty, fetal growth and programming -- Principles of placental amino acid transport -- Two key amino acid transporters in the placenta -- Placental amino acid transport in altered fetal growth -- Regulation of placental amino acid transport -- Classic regulators -- Emerging concepts in placental amino acid transporter regulation -- Regulation of placental amino acid transport: who is in charge? -- Fetal signals -- Placental imprinted genes and placental growth factor production -- Maternal signals -- The placenta as a nutrient sensor - a model -- Maternal low-protein diet in the rat -- Maternal high-fat diet in the mouse -- Obesity in pregnant women.

Conclusion -- Acknowledgements -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 13 Thematernal circulation and placental shape: Villus remodelling induced through haemodynamics and oxidative and endoplasmic reticulum stress -- Spiral artery conversion -- Onset of the maternal arterial circulation to the human placenta -- Developmental villus regression -- Abnormal villus regression -- Abnormal maternal blood flow during the second and third trimesters and placental development -- Oxidative and endoplasmic reticulum stress -- Abnormal velocity of maternal arterial inflow -- Implications for developmental programming -- Acknowledgements -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 14 Glucocorticoids and placental programming -- Introduction -- Glucocorticoids as developmental signals -- Environmental signals -- Maturational signals -- Fetoplacental glucocorticoid exposure -- Glucocorticoids and placental development -- Placental size -- Placental morphology -- Placental nutrient transport and utilization -- Placental endocrine function -- Mechanisms of glucocorticoid action -- Conclusion -- Acknowledgements -- References -- Discussion -- Chapter 15 Clinical biomarkers of placental development -- Introduction -- Ultrasonic assessment of placentation -- Placental volume and thickness -- Placental site -- Placental maturity -- Placental lesions -- Doppler flow velocimetry of the uteroplacental circulation -- Uterine artery Doppler -- Umbilical artery Doppler -- Biochemical markers of placentation -- Pregnancy-associated plasma protein A (PAPP-A) -- alpha-fetoprotein -- Human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) -- Angiogenesis-associated proteins and pre-eclampsia -- Other placentally derived proteins -- Combined ultrasonic and biochemical assessment of placentation -- Clinical utility of assessing placentation -- Future research -- Conclusion -- References -- Discussion.

Chapter 16 The placental roots of cardiovascular disease.