Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) is a condition in which the fetus does not achieve its full growth potential. This compromises fetal development as well as size, resulting in low birthweight and represents the second leading cause of infant mortality in the world, affecting almost 10% of all human pregnancies. An association between IUGR and high rates of morbidity and predisposition to diseases in adulthood, including gastrointestinal and metabolic disorders exists. Proposed causes of growth restriction in utero include genetic, maternal, fetal, and placental factors. From an epidemiological point of view, maternal undernutrition is the main cause of IUGR in developing countries. On the other hand, placental insufficiency is the predominant factor in high income populations, as a result of maternal hypertension. Given this scenario, studies devoted to investigating physiological mechanisms of IUGR establishment and physiological outcomes in offspring deserve special attention.
This Research Topic welcomes contributions that improves our understanding of the physiological causes for fetal growth restriction, considering cellular and molecular mechanisms, and of the physiological basis for predisposition toward various diseases in later life.
Potential areas of interest may include, but are not limited to:
? Physiology
? Cellular biology
? Molecular biology
? Pathophysiology
We encourage the submission of different article types to this collection, especially reviews, mini-reviews, and original research papers.
Even though abstract submission is not mandatory, we encourage all interested researchers to submit an abstract before submitting their manuscript. Abstracts do not have to coincide with the final abstract of the manuscripts.
Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) is a condition in which the fetus does not achieve its full growth potential. This compromises fetal development as well as size, resulting in low birthweight and represents the second leading cause of infant mortality in the world, affecting almost 10% of all human pregnancies. An association between IUGR and high rates of morbidity and predisposition to diseases in adulthood, including gastrointestinal and metabolic disorders exists. Proposed causes of growth restriction in utero include genetic, maternal, fetal, and placental factors. From an epidemiological point of view, maternal undernutrition is the main cause of IUGR in developing countries. On the other hand, placental insufficiency is the predominant factor in high income populations, as a result of maternal hypertension. Given this scenario, studies devoted to investigating physiological mechanisms of IUGR establishment and physiological outcomes in offspring deserve special attention.
This Research Topic welcomes contributions that improves our understanding of the physiological causes for fetal growth restriction, considering cellular and molecular mechanisms, and of the physiological basis for predisposition toward various diseases in later life.
Potential areas of interest may include, but are not limited to:
? Physiology
? Cellular biology
? Molecular biology
? Pathophysiology
We encourage the submission of different article types to this collection, especially reviews, mini-reviews, and original research papers.
Even though abstract submission is not mandatory, we encourage all interested researchers to submit an abstract before submitting their manuscript. Abstracts do not have to coincide with the final abstract of the manuscripts.
