Mom’s Pregnancy Diet and Low Birth Weight Can Impact Kidney Size at Birth, But Not in Adulthood

Article title: Podocyte endowment and the impact of adult body size on kidney health

Authors: Luise A. Cullen-McEwen, James van der Wolde, Kotaro Haruhara, Leon Tribolet, John P. Dowling, Michael G. Bertram, Robert de Matteo, Fabian Haas, Jan Czogalla, Yusuke Okabayashi, James A. Armitage, M. Jane Black, Wendy E. Hoy, Victor G. Puelles, John F. Bertram

From the authors: “The present study shows, for the first time, that low birth weight as a result of maternal nutrition is associated with low podocyte endowment. However, a mild podocyte deficit at birth did not result in glomerular pathology in adulthood.”

This study is highlighted as one of October’s “best of the best” as part of the American Physiological Society’s APSselect program.