A role for maternally derived myokines to optimize placental function and fetal growth across gestation.
Exercise during pregnancy is associated with improved health outcomes for both mother and baby, including a reduced risk of future obesity and susceptibility to chronic diseases. Overwhelming evidence demonstrates a protective effect of maternal exercise against fetal birth weight extremes, reducing the rates of both large- and small-for-gestational-age infants. It is speculated that this protective effect is mediated in part through exercise-induced regulation of maternal physiology and placental development and function. However, the specific mechanisms through which maternal exercise regulates these changes remain to be discovered. We hypothesize that myokines, a collection of peptides and cytokines secreted from contracting skeletal muscles during exercise, may be an important missing link in the story. Myokines are known to reduce inflammation, improve metabolism and enhance macronutrient transporter expression and activity in various tissues of nonpregnant individuals. Little research to date has focused on the specific roles of the myokine secretome in the context of pregnancy; however, it is likely that myokines secreted from exercising skeletal muscles may modulate the maternal milieu and directly impact the vital organ of pregnancy-the placenta. In the current review, data in strong support of this potential role of myokines will be presented, suggesting myokine secretion as a key mechanism through which maternal exercise optimizes fetal growth trajectories. It is clear that further research is warranted in this area, as knowledge of the biological roles of myokines in the context of pregnancy would better inform clinical recommendations for exercise during pregnancy and contribute to the development of important therapeutic interventions.
a Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada.
Chantal
C
Dubé
b Institut de recherche de l'Hôpital Montfort, Ottawa, ON K1K 0T1, Canada.|c Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology department, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada.
Céline
C
Aguer
d School of Human Kinetics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 1A2, Canada.|e Healthy Active Living and Obesity Research Group, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L1, Canada.
Kristi
K
Adamo
a Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada.|f Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada.
Shannon
S
Bainbridge
D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism*; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D047109:Fetal Development / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D010455:Peptides / Q000378:metabolism*; D010920:Placenta / Q000502:physiology*; D011247:Pregnancy
D016207:Cytokines; D010455:Peptides
activité physique; croissance fœtale; development; développement; exercice physique; exercise; fetal growth; grossesse; muscle squelettique; myokines; physical activity; physiologie; physiology; placenta; pregnancy; skeletal muscle; transport