68 research outputs found
Pregnant women become insensitive to cold stress
BACKGROUND: The function of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is known to be altered during pregnancy, but it has not been tested with a natural stressor. METHODS: A group of pregnant women (n = 10) were tested towards the end of pregnancy (mean 36.8 ± 2.5 weeks gestation) and about 8 weeks postpartum (mean 7.8 ± 1.5 weeks), together with a matched control group, with a one minute cold hand stressor test. Saliva samples were collected before and 10 and 20 minutes after the test, and stored for later radioimmunoassay of cortisol. RESULTS: The control group showed a highly significant response to the test. The pregnant group showed no response, and the postpartum group a variable but non significant one CONCLUSIONS: This shows that the HPA axis becomes hypofunctional to a natural stressor at the end of pregnancy. It is suggested that one possible evolutionary function for this is to protect the fetus from the stress responses of the mother
Different mechanisms operating during different critical time-windows reduce rat fetal beta cell mass due to a maternal low-protein or low-energy diet
Concentrations of corticotrophin-releasing hormone in the umbilical-cord blood of pregnancies complicated by pre-eclampsia
Modulation of sodium transport in fetal alveolar epithelial cells by oxygen and corticosterone
Ultrasound measurement of fetal adrenal gland in fetuses with intrauterine growth restriction, an early predictive method for adverse outcomes
Alteration in methylation level at 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 gene promoter in infants born to preeclamptic women
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