High Fat Programming and Cardiovascular Disease

Abstract

Programming is triggered through events during critical developmental phases that alter offspring health outcomes. High fat programming is defined as the maintenance on a high fat diet during fetal and/or early postnatal life that induces metabolic and physiological alterations that compromise health. The maternal nutritional status, including the dietary fatty acid composition, during gestation and/or lactation, are key determinants of fetal and postnatal development. A maternal high fat diet and obesity during gestation compromises the maternal metabolic state and, through high fat programming, presents an unfavorable intrauterine milieu for fetal growth and development thereby conferring adverse cardiac outcomes to offspring. Stressors on the heart, such as a maternal high fat diet and obesity, alter the expression of cardiac-specific factors that alter cardiac structure and function. The proper nutritional balance, including the fatty acid balance, particularly during developmental windows, are critical for maintaining cardiac structure, preserving cardiac function and enhancing the cardiac response to metabolic challenges.

Programming With Varying Dietary Fat Content Alters Cardiac Insulin Receptor, Glut4 and FoxO1 Immunoreactivity in Neonatal Rats, Whereas High Fat Programming Alters Cebpa Gene Expression in Neonatal Female Rats

“…Maternal nutrition, during gestation and/or lactation, largely determines fetal and neonatal growth and development and shapes offspring’s health outcomes. A maternal HFD during gestation diminishes maternal metabolism and physiology and, through high fat programming, provides a suboptimal intrauterine environment for fetal growth and development, thereby conferring unfavorable cardiac outcomes to offspring ( 71 ). As a cardiac stressor, high fat programming alters the expression of cardiac factors that modify cardiac structure and function ( 71 ), i.e.…”

“…‡ p < 0.05 for control and 20F males compared to control and 20F females, respectively. cardiac stressor, high fat programming alters the expression of cardiac factors that modify cardiac structure and function (71), i.e. may induce cardiac remodeling, with specific programming induced alterations reported across species [reviewed in (71)].…”

High-Fat Diets Modify the Proteolytic Activities of Dipeptidyl-Peptidase IV and the Regulatory Enzymes of the Renin–Angiotensin System in Cardiovascular Tissues of Adult Wistar Rats

“…Adequate nutritional status is essential for maintaining cardiovascular structure and functionality in the face of metabolic challenges [ 2 , 70 ]. During the last decade, there has been intensive debate about the advice to reduce SAFA and increase MUFA or polyunsaturated (PUFA) to reduce the risk of CVD [ 71 , 72 ].…”

“…The high consumption of a high-fat diet (HFD) has been associated with most of the epidemiological evidence during the last decades, especially the sources of saturated fatty acids (SAFA) and cholesterol have been associated with an increased risk of suffering a series of medical conditions such as obesity, diabetes, metabolic syndrome (MetS), and cardiovascular diseases (CVD); however, these results do not extend to other types of lipid sources [ 1 ]. HFD is a cardiac stressor that alters the expression of specific cardiac factors due to glycolipotoxicity [ 2 ] and modifies cardiac structure and function. However, trials involving the Mediterranean diet indicate that monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) are more effective than low-fat and low-cholesterol diets in preventing cardiovascular mortality and coronary artery disease [ 3 ].…”

Effects of Bergamot Polyphenols on Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Sarcoplasmic Reticulum Stress in Diabetic Cardiomyopathy

“…A high-fat diet during gestation in several species causes deleterious effects in newborns; in particular, altered gene expression, abnormalities in the functions of antioxidant enzymes, the increased possibility of developing atherogenesis, and damage to the cardiovascular system [ 139 ]. The reduction of fatty acids intake generally has several benefits, such as a reduction in body weight, and cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and an improvement in the functioning of the myocardium [ 140 , 141 ]. Polyphenols are bioactive chemical compounds synthesized by plants that are mainly found in fruits and vegetables, where they are responsible for color, flavor, and many pharmacological activities.…”