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Genome-wide association studies of birth weight have focused on fetal genetics, whereas relatively little is known about the role of maternal genetic variation. We aimed to identify maternal genetic variants associated with birth weight that could highlight potentially relevant maternal determinants of fetal growth. We meta-analysed data on up to 8.7 million SNPs in up to 86 577 women of European descent from the Early Growth Genetics (EGG) Consortium and the UK Biobank. We used structural equation modelling (SEM) and analyses of mother–child pairs to quantify the separate maternal and fetal genetic effects. Maternal SNPs at 10 loci (MTNR1B, HMGA2, SH2B3, KCNAB1, L3MBTL3, GCK, EBF1, TCF7L2, ACTL9, CYP3A7) were associated with offspring birth weight at P < 5 Â 10 À8 . In SEM analyses, at least 7 of the 10 associations were consistent with effects of the maternal genotype acting via the intrauterine environment, rather than via effects of shared alleles with the fetus. Variants, or correlated proxies, at many of the loci had been previously associated with adult traits, including fasting glucose (MTNR1B, GCK and TCF7L2) and sex hormone levels (CYP3A7), and one (EBF1) with gestational duration. The identified associations indicate that genetic effects on maternal glucose, cytochrome P450 activity and gestational duration, and potentially on maternal blood pressure and immune function, are relevant for fetal growth. Further characterization of these associations in mechanistic and causal analyses will enhance understanding of the potentially modifiable maternal determinants of fetal growth, with the goal of reducing the morbidity and mortality associated with low and high birth weights.
Background: Obesity is thought to be the consequence of an unhealthy nutrition and a lack of physical activity. Although the resulting metabolic alterations such as impaired glucose homeostasis and insulin sensitivity can usually be improved by physical activity, some obese patients fail to enhance skeletal muscle metabolic health with exercise training. Since this might be largely heritable, maternal nutrition during pregnancy and lactation is hypothesized to impair offspring skeletal muscle physiology.
Objectives: This PhD thesis aims to investigate the consequences of maternal high-fat diet (mHFD) consumption on offspring skeletal muscle physiology and exercise performance. We could show that maternal high-fat diet during gestation and lactation decreases the offspring’s training efficiency and endurance performance by influencing the epigenetic profile of their skeletal muscle and altering the adaptation to an acute exercise bout, which in long-term, increases offspring obesity susceptibility.
Experimental setup: To investigate this issue in detail, we conducted several studies with a similar maternal feeding regime. Dams (C57BL/6J) were either fed a low-fat diet (LFD; 10 energy% from fat) or high-fat diet (HFD; 40 energy% from fat) during pregnancy and lactation. After weaning, male offspring of both maternal groups were switched to a LFD, on which they remained until sacrifice in week 6, 15 or 25. In one study, LFD feeding was followed by HFD provision from week 15 until week 25 to elucidate the effects on offspring obesity susceptibility. In week 7, all mice were randomly allocated to a sedentary group (without running wheel) or an exercised group (with running wheel for voluntary exercise training). Additionally, treadmill endurance tests were conducted to investigate training performance and efficiency. In order to uncover regulatory mechanisms, each study was combined with a specific analytical setup, such as whole genome microarray analysis, gene and protein expression analysis, DNA methylation analyses, and enzyme activity assays.
Results: mHFD offspring displayed a reduced training efficiency and endurance capacity. This was not due to an altered skeletal muscle phenotype with changes in fiber size, number, and type. DNA methylation measurements in 6 week old offspring showed a hypomethylation of the Nr4a1 gene in mHFD offspring leading to an increased gene expression. Since Nr4a1 plays an important role in the regulation of skeletal muscle energy metabolism and early exercise adaptation, this could affect offspring training efficiency and exercise performance in later life.
Investigation of the acute response to exercise showed that mHFD offspring displayed a reduced gene expression of vascularization markers (Hif1a, Vegfb, etc) pointing towards a reduced angiogenesis which could possibly contribute to their reduced endurance capacity. Furthermore, an impaired glucose utilization of skeletal muscle during the acute exercise bout by an impaired skeletal muscle glucose handling was evidenced by higher blood glucose levels, lower GLUT4 translocation and diminished Lactate dehydrogenase activity in mHFD offspring immediately after the endurance test. These points towards a disturbed use of glucose as a substrate during endurance exercise. Prolonged HFD feeding during adulthood increases offspring fat mass gain in mHFD offspring compared to offspring from low-fat fed mothers and also reduces their insulin sensitivity pointing towards a higher obesity and diabetes susceptibility despite exercise training. Consequently, mHFD reduces offspring responsiveness to the beneficial effects of voluntary exercise training.
Conclusion: The results of this PhD thesis demonstrate that mHFD consumption impairs the offspring’s training efficiency and endurance capacity, and reduced the beneficial effects of exercise on the development of diet-induced obesity and insulin resistance in the offspring.
This might be due to changes in skeletal muscle epigenetic profile and/or an impaired skeletal muscle angiogenesis and glucose utilization during an acute exercise bout, which could contribute to a disturbed adaptive response to exercise training.