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Objective To analyze maternal blood exposure to non-therapeutic antibiotics in late pregnancy and explore the effects of low-dose antibiotics on fetal growth and development.Methods A total of 104 pregnant women in late pregnancy (28-32 weeks) without serious pregnancy complications were enrolled,who had regular antenatal examination and delivery in Peking Union Medical College Hospital and did not use therapeutic antibiotics 2 months before pregnancy and in the whole pregnant process.The levels of antibiotics in the maternal blood were detected by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry,and the pregnant women were assigned into an antibiotic exposure group (antibiotic positive) and a non-exposure group (antibiotic negative).The length,weight,placental weight,and placental volume of the newborns in the two groups were measured,and the data were statistically analyzed by

IntroductionAssisted reproductive technologies (ART), namely in vitro fertilisation and intracytoplasmic sperm injection, have become widely used to treat infertility. Although the use of ART is generally considered favourable, there are ongoing concerns about the prenatal and perinatal risks as well as long-term risks for the child. Epidemiological studies have demonstrated an association between pathological events during fetal development and future cardiovascular risk, raising concerns about cardiovascular remodelling in fetuses conceived by ART. The authors hypothesise fetuses conceived by ART present signs of cardioventricular dysfunction, which can be detected by deformation analysis. To address these issues, we will assess comprehensive cardiovascular structure and function in ART offspring and explore the role of speckle-tracking in myocardial deformation.Methods and analysisThis prospective observational cohort study will include 100 singleton pregnancies conceived by ART and 100 controls identified in fetal life and followed up to 6 months old. At inclusion, a baseline assessment of the mothers and ART characteristics will be recorded by interview and review of medical records. Between 28 and 32 weeks gestation, a detailed fetal echography will be performed, including an assessment of estimated fetal weight, fetoplacental Doppler, fetal echocardiography and fetal abdominal artery ultrasound. On delivery, maternal and neonatal characteristics will be assessed. Within 60 days of birth, the first postnatal cardiovascular assessment will be conducted which will include echocardiography and abdominal artery ultrasound. At 6 months of age, the second infants’ follow-up evaluation will include the weight and length of the infant, echocardiography and abdominal artery ultrasound. Data will be presented as mean±SD, median or percentages where appropriate. A pEthics and disseminationEthical approval has been obtained from the Ethics Committee of Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University. Findings will be disseminated through scientific publications and conference presentations.Trial registration numberChiCTR1900021672.

Background Fetal essential organ development is completed during early pregnancy which is important for fetal and postnatal health. However, the effect of exposure to PM2.5 on fetal growth during early pregnancy is less studied and the related mechanisms are largely unknown. Methods We conducted a birth cohort study of 1945 pregnant women with measurement of the fetal crown to rump length (CRL) by ultrasound between the gestational age of 11 and 14 weeks. We estimated residential exposures of PM2.5 from the date of LMP to the date of ultrasound examination using a spatial-temporal land use regression model. Maternal hemoglobin concentration was examined by maternal blood samples during the same gestational period or ± 1 week of the ultrasound examination. The associations of exposure to PM2.5 with maternal hemoglobin concentration, and exposure to PM2.5 with fetal CRL during early pregnancy were estimated by multiple linear regression models. The mediation effect of maternal hemoglobin concentration on the association between exposure to PM2.5 and fetal CRL was explored by a casual mediation analysis. Results One IQR increment of prenatal exposure to PM2.5 was associated with a 0.929 g/L (95% CI: 0.068, 1.789) increase in maternal hemoglobin concentration, and associated with a −0.082 cm (95% CI: 0.139, −0.025) decrease in fetal CRL. One g/L increment of maternal hemoglobin concentration was associated a −0.011 cm (95% CI: 0.014, −0.008) decrease in fetal CRL. The mediation analysis indicated that 12.1% of the total effect of prenatal exposure to PM2.5 on reducing fetal CRL was mediated by increased maternal hemoglobin concentration. Conclusion Exposure to PM2.5 was associated with reduced fetal growth during early pregnancy and elevated maternal hemoglobin concentration mediated this association.

Background Disinfection by-products (DBPs) have been shown to be reproductive and developmental toxicity. However, few studies examine the effect of prenatal exposure to DBPs on fetal growth via ultrasound measures. Objective To investigate the associations between maternal exposure to DBPs during late pregnancy and ultrasound measures of fetal growth. Methods We included 332 pregnant women who presented to a hospital to wait for delivery in Wuhan, China. Ultrasound parameters of fetal growth including femur length (FL), head circumference (HC), abdominal circumference (AC) and biparietal diameter (BPD) were assessed. We measured maternal TCAA concentrations in first morning urine collected from late pregnancy as a biomarker of in utero DBP exposure levels. Multivariable linear regression models were used to examine the associations between maternal urinary TCAA concentrations during late pregnancy and ultrasound parameters of fetal growth. Results We found that elevated maternal creatinine (Cr)-adjusted urinary TCAA levels had negative associations with BPD, HC and FL in boys but not in girls (P interaction = 0.04, 0.05 and 0.08, respectively). Male fetal BPD, HC and FL had decreases of 0.21 cm (95% CI: −0.35, −0.07; P for trend = 0.003), 0.46 cm (95% CI: −0.81, −0.10; P for trend = 0.01) and 0.17 cm (95% CI: −0.30, −0.04; P for trend = 0.01) for the highest vs. lowest tertile of Cr-adjusted urinary TCAA, respectively. These negative associations persisted for maternal Cr-adjusted urinary TCAA concentrations modeled as continuous variables. Conclusion The results from our study suggest that maternal exposure to TCAA during late pregnancy may have adverse effects on male fetal growth.

to discuss the prenatal diagnosis of abnormalities of fetal limb bone.we selected 18 cases which long bone of fetus less than 2SD of average volume of gestational weeks or long bone changed into angle or other fetus's abnormalities by first B-mode ultrasonic. All above cases was delivered at Capital Medical University of Obstetric and Gynecological Hospital during Jan. 2006 to Dec. 2009. We B-mode ultrasonic was used to measure fetus's biparietal diameter (BPD), femur length (FL), abdominal circumference (AC), head circumference (HC), humerus length (HL), amniotic fluid index (AFI) and structures of organ and calculated FL/AC, growth speed of long bone. The standard of achondroplasia is that FL and HL are less than 4SD of average of gestational weeks or FL/AC less than 0.16. The standard of Osteogenesis Imperfecta is fetal long bone of fetus shows short and thick, curves into angle, fracture in uterus by X-ray, or skull shows thin or sink by X-ray.(1) by B-mode ultrasonic and X-ray exam of all 18 cases: 7 cases shows that HC2SD, 10 cases shows too much amniotic fluid, 12 cases shows AFI18.0, 9 cases shows abnormalities of narrow cavitas thoracis, disordered vertebral column, or unusual architecture of heart. For cases 1 to 14 are achondroplasia, among which, 11 cases are FL4SD and HL4SD, 2 cases are FL3SD and HL4SD, 1 case is not only FL2SD and HL3SD but also hydroncus all over the body of fetus. The growth velocity of long bone of fetus in all the 14 cases is more slowly than the normal rate. For all the above 14 cases, 12 cases FL/AC0.16, 1 case FL/AC = 0.19, 1 case FL/AC = 0.20. The length of femur or humerus is shorter than the normal rate and have other abnormalities the above last two cases. For case 15 and 16, they don't show any abnormalities of bone growth though one year's follow up studying. For case 17 and 18, they are osteogenesis imperfecta. (2) The result of fetal perinatal period fate and autopsy: there are 8 female and 10 male in all the 18 cases. One case is labored after 39 weeks pregnancy, and it is low birth weight infant, weight3%th. All the other cases are normally birth weight infant. All the 18 cases of abnormalities of fetal limb bone are examined by chromosomes check, among which, 9 cases are amniocentesis, 7 cases are cordocentesis, 2 cases are checked chromosomes by fetus cord blood, all the caryotype are normal. In the 16 autopsy cases, 14 cases are achondroplasia or hypochondroplasis. It can be seen amplifying extremities, hyperplasia chondrocytes of tubiform born, karyomegaly, anachromasis, hyperplasia capillaries though microscope and grow up into cartilage irregularly. Also can be seen hyperplasia chondrocytes of epiphyses, delaying osteosis. 2 cases are osteogenesis imperfecta. It can be seen broadening of metaphyses, exility of bone trabeculae. For the other two cases which the fetus is alive, we do the follow up studying to their one year old one of them is low birth weight new born, their limb and height are all normal.to diagnose fetal Achondroplasia, it is not only based on the significantly shorter of femur or humerus length but also based on the dynamics observing the long bone growth velocity and calculating FL/AC. For osteogenesis imperfecta fetus, it should be diagnosed by fractures in uterus though X-ray.

Background Maternal nutrition during different stages of pregnancy can induce significant changes in the structure, physiology, and metabolism of the offspring. These changes could have important implications on food animal production especially if these perturbations impact muscle and adipose tissue development. Here, we evaluated the impact of different maternal isoenergetic diets, alfalfa haylage (HY; fiber), corn (CN; starch), and dried corn distillers grains (DG; fiber plus protein plus fat), on the transcriptome of fetal muscle and adipose tissues in sheep. Results Prepartum diets were associated with notable gene expression changes in fetal tissues. In longissimus dorsi muscle, a total of 224 and 823 genes showed differential expression (FDR ≤0.05) in fetuses derived from DG vs. CN and HY vs. CN maternal diets, respectively. Several of these significant genes affected myogenesis and muscle differentiation. In subcutaneous and perirenal adipose tissues, 745 and 208 genes were differentially expressed (FDR ≤0.05), respectively, between CN and DG diets. Many of these genes are involved in adipogenesis, lipogenesis, and adipose tissue development. Pathway analysis revealed that several GO terms and KEGG pathways were enriched (FDR ≤0.05) with differentially expressed genes associated with tissue and organ development, chromatin biology, and different metabolic processes. Conclusions These findings provide evidence that maternal nutrition during pregnancy can alter the programming of fetal muscle and fat tissues in sheep. The ramifications of the observed gene expression changes, in terms of postnatal growth, body composition, and meat quality of the offspring, warrant future investigation. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2164-15-1034) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.