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Fetal programming may arise from prenatal exposure and increase the risk of diseases later in life, potentially mediated by the placenta. The objective of this systematic review was to summarize and critically evaluate publications describing associations between human placental changes and risk of atopic disorders during childhood. The review adhered to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐analysis guidelines. The inclusion criteria were original research articles or case reports written in English describing a human placental change in relation to disease occurring in offspring during childhood. The MEDLINE and EMBASE databases were searched for eligible studies. Risk of bias (RoB) was assessed using the ROBINS‐I tool. The results were pooled both in a narrative way and by a meta‐analysis. Nineteen studies were included (n = 12,997 participants). All studies had an overall serious RoB, and publication bias could not be completely ruled out. However, five studies showed that histological chorioamnionitis in preterm‐born children was associated with asthma‐related problems (pooled odds ratio = 3.25 (95% confidence interval = 2.22–4.75)). In term‐born children, a large placenta (≥750 g) increased the risk of being prescribed anti‐asthma medications during the first year of life. Placental histone acetylation, DNA methylation, and gene expression differences were found to be associated with different atopic disorders in term‐born children. There is some evidence supporting the idea that the placenta can mediate an increased risk of atopic disorders in children. However, further studies are needed to validate the findings, properly control for confounders, and examine potential mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the placental gene expression of substances in the inflammatory cascade and growth factors at nine different well-defined sampling sites in full-term placentas from 12 normal weight healthy non-smoking women with an uncomplicated singleton pregnancy. Methods: All placentas (six girls and six boys) were delivered vaginally. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to analyze toll receptor-2 and -4, interleukin-6 and -8, tumor necrosis factor-α, leptin, ghrelin, insulin-like growth factor-1 and -2, hepatocyte growth factor, hepatocyte growth factor receptor and insulin receptor (IR). Results: The leptin gene and the IR gene showed higher expression in lateral regions near the chorionic plate compared to central regions near the basal plate (P = 0.028 and P = 0.041, respectively). Conclusion: Our results suggest that the sampling site may influence the gene expression for leptin and IR in placental tissue obtained from full-term normal pregnancies. We speculate that this may be due to differences in placental structure and perfusion and may be important when future studies are designed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]