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Insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor expression in the placentae of diabetic and normal pregnancies

Hayati AR, Cheah FC, Tan AE, Tan GC

Early Hum Dev, 2007 Jan;83(1):41-6.
PMID: 16750336 DOI: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2006.04.002

BACKGROUND: Septal hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (sHCM) is a characteristic anomaly of the infant of diabetic mother (IDM). Insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) has been identified as a mediator of tissue overgrowth and we have previously shown that maternal IGF-1 levels were significantly elevated among neonates with asymmetrical sHCM. IGF-1 does not cross the placenta; it exerts physiologic action through binding to the IGF-1 receptor (IGF-1R). Localisation and expression of IGF-1R in term diabetic pregnancies are largely unclear. We have studied IGF-1R in the placentae of diabetic and normal pregnancies and this receptor expression in association with neonates with sHCM.
METHODS: IGF-1R localization and expression in the placentae of six diabetic pregnancies associated with neonatal sHCM were compared with six each of randomly selected diabetic and normal pregnancies without neonatal sHCM by immunohistochemistry. The staining for IGF-1R in the deciduas, cytotrophoblasts, syncytiotrophoblasts and villous endothelium for these 18 samples were assessed and scored by two pathologists who were blinded to the respective diagnoses.
RESULTS: Placental IGF-1R staining was negative in the villous endothelium for all three groups. IGF-1R staining was present in deciduas, cytotrophoblasts and syncytiotrophoblasts but the staining was weaker in the entire group of infants with sHCM compared to those without sHCM.
CONCLUSIONS: IGF-1R is localized in all cell types of the placenta except in villous endothelium. Weaker placental IGF-1R staining in the placentae of diabetic pregnancies associated with sHCM suggests reduced expression of IGF-1R. This may be a down-regulatory response to elevated maternal IGF with neonatal sHCM outcome.
Maternal blood pressure in pregnancy and newborn irritability

Chisholm JS, Woodson RH, da Costa Woodson EM

Early Hum Dev, 1978 Jul;2(2):171-8.
PMID: 720272

The neonatal period is being recognized as an important period for the development of patterns of interaction between mother and infant, and infant state has been shown to have a significant impact on mother--infant interactions. A major dimension of infant state, with implications for this interaction and for the development of later behaviour disorders, is the infant's irritability. Research with Navajo, Malay, Chinese and Tamil mothers and infants showed that normal variation in maternal blood pressure during pregnancy was related to newborn irritability as assessed with the Brazelton Scale. This relationship is discussed in terms of possible underlying mechanisms.
Relation between prenatal maternal blood pressure and infant irritability

Korner AF, Gabby T, Kraemer HC

Early Hum Dev, 1980 Mar;4(1):35-9.
PMID: 7389624

Chisholm et al. [4], using samples of Navajo and Malaysian newborns, found a significant positive relation between maternal normotensive blood pressures during the second trimester of pregnancy and at delivery and infant irritability in response to the Brazelton Examination. Measuring spontaneous crying with an electronic activity monitor and using a white middle-class American population, this relation was replicated for mothers with normotensive blood pressures during the third trimester of pregnancy. The combined findings of the 3 studies seem to suggest that maternal blood pressure in the latter part of pregnancy, even when within normal limits, is a factor in how irritable normal newborn infants are.
Delayed fathering and risk of mental disorders in adult offspring

Krishnaswamy S, Subramaniam K, Ramachandran P, Indran T, Abdul Aziz J

Early Hum Dev, 2011 Mar;87(3):171-5.
PMID: 21220193 DOI: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2010.12.004

Delayed parenting and child bearing at a very young age impose various risks to development of the offspring.
Early growth and home environment are associated with cognitive development in the first year of life of Malaysian infants

Nurliyana AR, Mohd Shariff Z, Mohd Taib MN, Gan WY, Tan KA

Early Hum Dev, 2020 Jan;140:104890.
PMID: 31655334 DOI: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2019.104890

BACKGROUND: Undernutrition and poor home environment in the first 2 years of life may have long-term effects on cognitive development.
AIMS: To determine the influence of linear growth and home environment towards cognitive development in the first year of life of Malaysian infants.
STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional findings at 12-13 months from a prospective cohort study of infants in Malaysia.
SUBJECTS: One hundred fifty-one infants recruited at 2-5 months were visited at home at 12-13 months (M = 12.95, SD = 0.98).
OUTCOME MEASURES: Maternal and infant measures during pregnancy and at birth were obtained from patient health clinic cards. Weight and length of infants were measured at 12-13 months. Home environment and cognitive development were assessed using HOME inventory and Bayley-III, respectively.
RESULTS: About 22.5% of infants experienced stunting and 14.6% had low home environment quality. The mean cognitive score was 94.54 (SD = 12.00). Stunted infants had 7.59 lower cognitive scores than non-stunted infants, while infants with low home environment quality had 12.09 lower cognitive scores than those with high home environment quality. Cognitive scores increased with better home environment quality in both stunted and non-stunted infants, but stunted infants scored lower than non-stunted infants in all conditions.
CONCLUSION: Stunting, a form of chronic undernutrition, and poor home environment may significantly influence cognitive development of infants. Interventions to prevent undernutrition should start as early as during pregnancy and caregivers should be informed on their roles in providing cognitive stimulation within the home environment for their children.
The androgen receptor gene and criminal offending: Evidence derived from international data

Ellis L, Hoskin A, Buker NH

Early Hum Dev, 2024 Sep 03;198:106113.
PMID: 39260075 DOI: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2024.106113

Beginning early in fetal development, the androgen receptor (AR) gene helps regulate bodily exposure to testosterone. Most studies of individuals have found an inverse correlation between the number of CAG repeats on this gene and serious forms of physical aggression. This two-phased study was primarily undertaken to determine if a link between AR CAGn and physical aggression also exists at an ecological level of analysis. To make this assessment, we first conducted a bivariate analysis of the average number of AR CAG repeats for a large number of countries and the rates of crime victimization in those same countries. Except for motor vehicle theft, as the national average number of CAG repeats increased, crime victimization rates decreased. This inverse relationship was especially strong for violent offenses. In the second phase of this study, we sought to determine if per capita gross domestic product, pathogen prevalence, and average intelligence might be mediating some of the AR CAG repeats-criminality relationship. Mediation analysis analysis indicated that, once gross domestic product and pathogenic prevalence were controlled, average intelligence was able to eliminate most of the links between CAG repeats and crime victimization rates, especially in the case of violent offenses. These findings suggest that the AR gene is not influencing criminality primarily by altering testosterone brain exposure (as we suspected). Instead, it may affect criminality mainly by affecting cognitive ability. In fact, once average national intelligence is included in the mediation analysis model, direct relationships between CAG repeats and measures of homicide, assault, and robbery were no longer statistically significant. Findings from this two-phased study point toward the AR gene as having multiple effects on brain functioning, particularly regarding intellectual development as hypothesized by Manning [62]. Replication is obviously needed.
Predictive model of neurodevelopmental outcome in neonatal hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy

El Shahed AI, Branson HM, Chacko A, Terumalay S, Zheng X, Pang EW, et al.

Early Hum Dev, 2025 Feb;201:106189.
PMID: 39787883 DOI: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2024.106189

OBJECTIVES: To build an early, prognostic model for adverse outcome in infants with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) receiving therapeutic hypothermia (TH) based on brain magnetic resonance images (MRI), electrophysiological tests and clinical assessments were performed during the first 5 days of life.
METHODS: Retrospective study of 182 neonates with HIE and managed with TH. The predominant pattern of HIE brain injury on MRI performed following cooling was scored by neuroradiologists. The electroencephalogram (EEG) background and evoked potential (EP) response, were analyzed. Area under the curve (AUC) of these tools for adverse outcome including death and/or moderate disabilities using the Bayley-III at 36 months were calculated. A stepwise model approach was used to reach the final most efficient predictive model.
RESULTS: Of 182 neonates, 99 were male (54.4 %), with median gestational age of 39 weeks (IQR 38-40) and median weight of 3.3 kg (IQR 2.9-3.7). On admission, 47 (26 %), 104 (57 %) and 31(17 %) neonates presented with mild, moderate and severe encephalopathy respectively. In multivariate analysis of 129 infants who received all prognostic modalities, the predictive value of a model of EEG plus MRI, AUC = 84 %) is equivalent to models of EEG plus MRI with added EP and clinical assessment at discharge (AUC = 84 and 85 % respectively).
CONCLUSION: In the era of cooling for neonatal HIE, the combination of EEG background and MRI during the first few days of life, provide an objective and highly reliable model for prediction of death and long-term disabilities.