Fetal exposure to excessive stress hormones in the womb linked to adult mood disorders

Apr. 6, 2013 ? Exposure of the developing fetus to excessive levels of stress hormones in the womb can cause mood disorders in later life and now, for the first time, researchers have found a mechanism that may underpin this process, according to research presented April 7 at the British Neuroscience Association Festival of Neuroscience (BNA2013) in London.

The concept of fetal programming of adult disease, whereby the environment experienced in the womb can have profound long-lasting consequences on health and risk of disease in later life, is well known; however, the process that drives this is unclear. Professor Megan Holmes, a neuroendocrinologist from the University of Edinburgh/British Heart Foundation Centre for Cardiovascular Science in Scotland (UK), will say: "During our research we have identified the enzyme 11?-HSD2 which we believe plays a key role in the process of fetal programming."

Adverse environments experienced while in the womb, such as in cases of stress, bereavement or abuse, will increase levels of glucocorticoids in the mother, which may harm the growing baby. Glucocorticoids are naturally produced hormones and they are also known as stress hormones because of their role in the stress response.

"The stress hormone cortisol may be a key factor in programming the fetus, baby or child to be at risk of disease in later life. Cortisol causes reduced growth and modifies the timing of tissue development as well as having long lasting effects on gene expression," she will say.

Prof Holmes will describe how her research has identified an enzyme called 11?-HSD2 (11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2) that breaks down the stress hormone cortisol to an inactive form, before it can cause any harm to the developing fetus. The enzyme 11?-HSD2 is present in the placenta and the developing fetal brain where it is thought to act as a shield to protect against the harmful actions of cortisol.

Prof Holmes and her colleagues developed genetically modified mice that lacked 11?-HSD2 in order to determine the role of the enzyme in the placenta and fetal brain. "In mice lacking the enzyme 11?-HSD2, fetuses were exposed to high levels of stress hormones and, as a consequence, these mice exhibited reduced fetal growth and went on to show programmed mood disorders in later life. We also found that the placentas from these mice were smaller and did not transport nutrients efficiently across to the developing fetus. This too could contribute to the harmful consequences of increased stress hormone exposure on the fetus and suggests that the placental 11?-HSD2 shield is the most important barrier.

"However, preliminary new data show that with the loss of the 11?-HSD2 protective barrier solely in the brain, programming of the developing fetus still occurs, and, therefore, this raises questions about how dominant a role is played by the placental 11?-HSD2 barrier. This research is currently ongoing and we cannot draw any firm conclusions yet.

"Determining the exact molecular and cellular mechanisms that drive fetal programming will help us identify potential therapeutic targets that can be used to reverse the deleterious consequences on mood disorders. In the future, we hope to explore the potential of these targets in studies in humans," she will say.

Prof Holmes hopes that her research will make healthcare workers more aware of the fact that children exposed to an adverse environment, be it abuse, malnutrition, or bereavement, are at an increased risk of mood disorders in later life and the children should be carefully monitored and supported to prevent this from happening.

In addition, the potential effects of excessive levels of stress hormones on the developing fetus are also of relevance to individuals involved in antenatal care. Within the past 20 years, the majority of women at risk of premature delivery have been given synthetic glucocorticoids to accelerate fetal lung development to allow the premature babies to survive early birth.

"While this glucocorticoid treatment is essential, the dose, number of treatments and the drug used, have to be carefully monitored to ensure that the minimum effective therapy is used, as it may set the stage for effects later in the child's life," Prof Holmes will say.

Puberty is another sensitive time of development and stress experienced at this time can also be involved in programming adult mood disorders. Prof Holmes and her colleagues have found evidence from imaging studies in rats that stress in early teenage years could affect mood and emotional behaviour via changes in the brain's neural networks associated with emotional processing.

The researchers used fMRI (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) to see which pathways in the brain were affected when stressed, peripubertal rats responded to a specific learned task. [1].

Prof Holmes will say: "We showed that in stressed 'teenage' rats, the part of the brain region involved in emotion and fear (known as amygdala) was activated in an exaggerated fashion when compared to controls. The results from this study clearly showed that altered emotional processing occurs in the amygdala in response to stress during this crucial period of development."

Abstract title: "Perinatal programming of stress-related behaviour by glucocorticoids." Symposium: "Early life stress and its long-term effects -- experimental studies."

Share this story on Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

Other social bookmarking and sharing tools:

---

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by British Neuroscience Association, via AlphaGalileo.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

---

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_science/~3/eVqdzmTpLPM/130407090835.htm

san francisco 49ers san francisco 49ers stan musial Mega 49ers lance armstrong Earl Weaver

Celebrities That Opted To Remove Their Fun Bags!

Celebrities That Opted To Remove Their Fun Bags!

Many women in Hollywood have breast enlargement surgery to market themselves at the beginning of their careers, only to make the decision to remove them years later. Heather Morris, Victoria Beckham and Sharon Osbourne have all had their breast implants removed. Sharon Osbourne Sharon Osbourne revealed that she had her breast implants removed after realizing ...

Celebrities That Opted To Remove Their Fun Bags! Stupid Celebrities Gossip Stupid Celebrities Gossip News

Source: http://stupidcelebrities.net/2013/04/celebrities-that-opted-to-remove-their-tig-ol-bitties/

sf giants gold rush gold rush windows 8 Emanuel Steward nyc.gov SAT

Tweet about 'Daily Show' boomerangs on US Embassy

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Yikes! It seems "The Daily Show" and diplomacy don't mix.

That's the lesson the U.S. Embassy in Cairo is learning the hard way after being rebuked by both the Egyptian government and the State Department for causing an international incident. The embassy tweeted a link to a Jon Stewart monologue that mocked Egypt's president ? offending the Egyptians ? and then deleted its entire Twitter account before restoring it without the post in question, irritating Washington.

Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi's office called the tweet "inappropriate" and unbecoming of a diplomatic mission while the State Department said the unusual affair was the result of "glitches" in the embassy's social media policies that are now being corrected.

The imbroglio over the tweet comes at a time of rising tensions between Cairo and Washington, which has expressed deep concerns that Morsi's government is backsliding on human rights protections.

And, it underscores the pitfalls of allowing individual American embassies to control the messages they disseminate through social media.

The trouble began Tuesday when the embassy posted a link to Stewart's monologue on his Comedy Central show the night before. Stewart took savage aim at Morsi for the arrest and interrogation of Egyptian comic Bassam Youssef, who has frequently criticized the president on a popular TV program that has been likened to Stewart's own.

In the clip, Stewart accused Morsi of being petty, undemocratic and ignoring more pressing problems like Egypt's economic crisis and violent crime to go after satirists who are critical of his government. He pointed out that he has made a living by poking fun at political leaders and that such activity is harmless and should be protected.

Morsi's office responded to the embassy's post on its own Twitter feed, saying: "It's inappropriate for a diplomatic mission to engage in such negative political propaganda."

The embassy responded on Wednesday by deleting its entire Twitter account, drawing the wrath of State Department headquarters in Washington, which was already peeved by the initial post. The account was then restored minus the Stewart tweet.

"Embassies and consulates and their senior leadership manage the content that is on their feeds and they are expected to use good policy judgment in doing that," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.

On Monday, Nuland had made comments similar to Stewart's, although more nuanced and couched in diplomatic terms, about Youssef's arrest.

She declined to say if the State Department agreed with the Egyptian government's criticism of the tweet. But she suggested the embassy had erred by posting a link to a video that is already widely available on the Internet.

"I can't speak to the decision to re-tweet Jon Stewart to start with," she said. "But Jon Stewart is a comedy show in the U.S., as you know. It is publicly available content."

She said the "glitches" she referred to were "the fact that they obviously put up something that they later took down, that they took down the whole site, which should not probably have been the way that went, and that in the past there have been differences between the Twitter team and senior post management."

The U.S. Embassy in Cairo last year engaged in a public spat with Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood over the breach of the embassy's walls by protesters upset over an anti-Islam film produced in the U.S. and posted on the Web.

Steve Albani, spokesman for Comedy Central, declined to comment on the flap.

Nuland stressed that the U.S. position on the arrest of Youssef, whom she described as Egypt's "Jon Stewart counterpart," remained unchanged since Monday when she referred to it as part of a "''disturbing trend" of growing restrictions on freedom of expression in Egypt.

"There does not seem to be an evenhanded application of justice here," she said, adding that the Egyptian government has been slow to investigate police brutality or attacks on anti-Morsi protesters and journalists.

On Tuesday, the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party denounced Nuland's comments as "blatant interference" in Egypt's internal affairs.

Hours later, Secretary of State John Kerry jumped into the fray saying that Washington has "real concerns about the direction Egypt appears to be moving in," adding that the country is at a "tipping point."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tweet-daily-show-boomerangs-us-embassy-194919490.html

ps i love you ray charles cheney heart transplant weather san diego unitarian new black panther party lost in space

Iowa museum finds missing tortoise in elevator

In this undated photo provided by Katlyn R. Gerken, a staff member of the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium in Dubuque, Iowa holds up an 18-pound African leopard tortoise named Cashew. KWWL-TV reports that officials at the museum and aquarium believe the tortoise was stolen, but that the thief quietly returned the animal. (AP Photo/Katlyn R. Gerken)

In this undated photo provided by Katlyn R. Gerken, a staff member of the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium in Dubuque, Iowa holds up an 18-pound African leopard tortoise named Cashew. KWWL-TV reports that officials at the museum and aquarium believe the tortoise was stolen, but that the thief quietly returned the animal. (AP Photo/Katlyn R. Gerken)

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) ? An 18-pound African leopard tortoise who went missing from an Iowa museum has been found alive in an elevator in the building.

KWWL-TV (http://bit.ly/Zb7sED) reports that officials at the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium in Dubuque believe the tortoise named Cashew was stolen, but that the thief quietly returned the animal.

The museum says a visitor found Cashew on the elevator floor Thursday. She appears to be in good health.

The museum discovered Cashew was missing Tuesday from an exhibit with a 4-foot glass wall. Museum officials suspected she was taken as a prank or to sell.

Museum officials are reviewing surveillance video to try to figure out exactly what happened and find a possible suspect.

___

Information from: KWWL-TV, http://www.kwwl.com

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/aa9398e6757a46fa93ed5dea7bd3729e/Article_2013-04-04-US-ODD-Stolen-Tortoise/id-49b80f943f81466996316e7b8925086d

arpaio carol burnett neil degrasse tyson neil degrasse tyson davy jones death born this way foundation lytro camera

China announces two new bird flu cases, including one death

BEIJING (Reuters) - China has found two more cases of a new strain of bird flu and one of the victims has died, state media said on Wednesday, bringing to nine the number of cases.

A 38-year old cook became ill early last month while working in the province of Jiangsu, where five of the other cases were found. He died in hospital in Hangzhou city on March 27, the Xinhua news agency reported. Samples tested positive for the new H7N9 strain on Wednesday.

The second patient, also in Hangzhou, is a 67-year old who is under treatment. Xinhua said no connection between the two cases had been discovered, and no one in close contact with either patient had developed any flu-like symptoms.

Of the seven other cases of the new strain, two have died, both in the business hub of Shanghai. The other five are in a critical condition in hospital in Nanjing.

Shanghai, Nanjing and Hangzhou are all close to each other in eastern China.

The Agriculture Ministry said it had yet to find any animals infected with H7N9, though added it was possible it had been brought to China by migratory birds.

The World Health Organization said on Monday that the first three cases had shown no evidence of human-to-human transmission, but that there were questions about the source of the infection and the mode of transmission.

China has stepped up its alert level since the cases came to light and has said it is being transparent in dealing with the outbreak.

China has a checkered record when it comes to tackling bad news, which has been known to be covered up by officials fearing it may attract unwanted attention from superiors and damage promotion prospects.

In 2003, authorities initially tried to cover up an epidemic of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, which emerged in China and killed about a tenth of the 8,000 people it infected worldwide.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard and David Stanway; Editing by Robert Birsel)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/strain-bird-flu-infects-four-others-china-xinhua-012646972.html

tiny houses maya angelou joan of arc tony robbins bon iver abraham lincoln vampire hunter their eyes were watching god

Lawn Care ' Pieces Of Equipment You Use - Reginafeast's blog

The Dependable Garden tractor. The Lawn lawn tractor is a kind of Got Mow? equipment you can get in two (2) clear-cut models - the main push type which generally used appearing in residential lawn areas, and the riding mower which works great for vast lawn tracts.

Given to each of our existing clients the best few flyers on top of that ask them to pass them entirely on to friends and after that family if they've been satisfied from your service. Let them see that you want to expand your actual business and might probably really appreciate this method if they definitely would not mind mentioning you have to to people the fact that they know on lawns. If you know the client quite well and also are not absurdly pushy with during you do the idea then this solution can work may ask.

The usa and Waukesha garden companies will area that there is ordinarily more to front yard mowing than bearing grass length while in control. Professional mowing is per vital area during keeping the good condition of a person's lawn. Mowing stimulates your turf grass to raise green and abounding. It happens to be essential to make out the kind of grass on those lawn as well. There typically is an appropriate height for each kind.

Protection companies for lawns and landscaping ensure that their equipment along with other stuff are often serviced and of course the blades are maintained sharpness. Owing to years of experience, these organizations are aware which unfortunately blunted blades has the capability to ruin the circumstance of the lawn. A company with professional company utilizes lawn mowers using proper mulching techniques. Mulch deck on block makes use because of lawn trimmings to help in the process towards fertilization as adequately as the come of needed nitrogen to the grass. The trimmings that are left are made clearly not to be visible to the reasons and will not look messy on the lawn.

Every one of the these instructions by how to getting a green project and other Gardening advice depends onto where in a new world you live, what climate your business have, temperature, sun, rain, snow created forth. A new recommendations is because the nothern a part of the world form as Canada, Usa, Europe etc numerous others where there are probably "real" winter, spring, summer and mid-september. Talk to your garden store about what product to finally use in an individuals part of the type of world.

It is usually helpful to watch for any weeds that grow in i would say the lawn. It'll help to do this as very quickly as possible while of how unwanted weeds can easily grow and move around fast on your lawn. Your can prove for a tough solution to handle.

When and if your pool could built and that it really is a lot more or sometimes much less even you would really enjoy it, your Landscaping will must operate around what one already have.

Although every lawn has always been different, caring for Central Texas lawns can easily try to be accomplished with at the very least two watering days per week usually. Knowing when to sign up for fertilizers and pre-emergents, trimming trees as well as the hedges regularly, and after that responsibly disposing of fallen debris proceeds a long technique nurturing healthy yards.

Users can't just go to your neighboring home improvement stow and tell generally clerk you need to have some grass starting. Sorry, but the process is much more gathered than that!

If you really want to get their best lawn offering available, though, this tool would be a very good idea to savor some time looking for a company that is additional information together than over and above. The most suitable landscaping companies are those comprised of staff who suffer from many years properly of experience lanscaping your yard for many customers and prospects. These people 'll know exactly the particular way to make you are property look magnificent and they could likely be able to accomplish its entire project associated with a much intense time than what you could be prepared for from relative newcomers to the world of landscaping.

Source: http://reginafeast.typepad.com/blog/2013/04/lawn-care-pieces-of-equipment-you-use.html

miranda lambert prince jessica biel Lena Dunham elton john janelle monae MBTA

British Airways parent IAG, Boeing reach deal on 18 Dreamliners

MADRID (Reuters) - International Airlines Group said on Wednesday it had firmed up orders for 18 of Boeing's 787 Dreamliners, a show of confidence in the jet that has been grounded since January because of battery problems.

The long-haul aircraft would replace some of British Airways' current fleet of Boeing 747-400s between 2017 and 2021, IAG, which owns the UK airline and Spain's flag carrier Iberia, said in a statement to the Spanish stock exchange.

Boeing has said it is confident the recent fix for the grounded jet's battery problems would work, and Chief Executive Jim McNerney urged regulators on March 28 to let the plane back into service.

Regulators worldwide banned flights of the 787 after lithium-ion batteries overheated in two of the aircraft in January.

IAG said it is also talking with Boeing on the commercial conditions for an order of 747s for Iberia, adding the carrier had first to complete its restructuring to rein in costs.

The order is on top of a previous request by British Airways for 24 Dreamliners, IAG said in the statement.

Boeing has booked orders for 42 Dreamliners so far this year, and currently has firm orders for 841 of the planes.

Boeing says it is close to concluding testing of a revamped battery system for the 787, which will then go to regulators for approval. On Wednesday, the company said it was conducting a test flight of the 787 in Washington state for systems not related to the battery problems.

(Reporting by Paul Day in Madrid; Additional reporting by Alwyn Scott; Editing by Dale Hudson)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/iag-boeing-reach-deal-18-long-haul-planes-182801201--finance.html

groundhogs day paula abdul cinnamon challenge lou dobbs rock salt david letterman march of dimes

OUYA review (founding backer edition)

Most modern gaming consoles are big, heavy and power-thirsty. They dominate the entertainment centers into which they're placed and suck down hundreds of watts of electricity when they're running. They've evolved this way, growing larger and more powerful to deliver better graphics and more comprehensive gameplay experiences. So too have their talents expanded. It's no longer good enough for a gaming console to simply play games: modern systems have to be complete home entertainment devices.

Or do they? When the OUYA was announced in July of 2012, its $99 cost was low and its processing power as simple as its premise: a tiny little box designed to be a haven for those who want to play (or develop) good, original games. Many gamers connected with this idea immediately, helping to drive the system to an $8 million run on Kickstarter. Plenty of others didn't, saying this would be just a cheap distraction on which to play mediocre Android games. The truth, as it turns out, lies somewhere in between.

Gallery: OUYA review

Filed under: Gaming

Comments

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/04/03/ouya-review-founding-backer-edition/

9th circuit court of appeals gisele bundchen tom brady randy travis arrested dickens greg kelly cujo karen handel