Slow Prenatal Growth and Accelerated Postnatal Growth Critical Influences on Adult Blood Pressure

摘要

The mechanism by which environmental influences in early rife lead to an elevation in blood pressure has not been clearly elucidated. Obesity is associated with increased plasma leptin concentrations, and a chronic increase in circulating leptin leads to a marked increase in blood pressure. The long-term actions of leptin in the regulation of blood pressure are not clearly understood but are suggested to involve interactions with hypothalamic neuropeptides critical to appetite, energy homeostasis, and sympathetic nervous system outflow. Experimental studies indicate that prenatal undernutrition followed by postnatal nutritional excess leads to increased circulating levels of leptin, leptin resistance, and dysregulation of hypothalamic neuropeptides.