Fetal Origin of Metabolic Syndrome

Metabolic syndrome (MS) is a complex of metabolic disorders that includes obesity, hypertension, and glucose-lipid metabolism abnormalities. MS is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease. While there is growing epidemiological and laboratory evidence supporting the fetal origin of MS, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. This chapter aims to elucidate the intrauterine programming mechanisms underlying the main characteristics of fetal-originated MS caused by various adverse environmental conditions during pregnancy, including abnormal glucose and lipid metabolism, hypertension, and obesity. The changes in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis-related neuroendocrine metabolic programming and its “two-programming and two-strike” mechanism play a crucial regulatory role in the occurrence of fetal-originated MS. This chapter reviews the research progress of the occurrence and intrauterine programming mechanism of fetal-originated MS, providing a theoretical and experimental basis for its clinical early warning, diagnosis, and treatment.