Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

The long-term aim of my research program is to advance the basic understanding of the mechanistic functionality of the placenta, by identifying and characterizing biologically relevant exposures which alter placental biology at the molecular through to functional level. In Eutherian mammals, the placenta has evolved to become the physiological and metabolic link between the gestational parent and their offspring. Despite its integral role in sustaining new life, it is the least understood and least studied of all mammalian organs. The placenta, embedded in the uterine wall, is tethered by the umbilical cord to the fetus and acts as the interface of nutrient and oxygen transport, eliminates waste, regulates fetal temperature and produces hormones that promote appropriate maternal adaptation to pregnancy. Examining the response to challenges or the potential differences in form and function with varying environmental conditions (exercise or high energy expenditure for this program of research) in placenta tissue models is a highly novel research area. My team is interested in the impact of maternal energy expenditure on fundamental aspects of placenta biology. Based on our recent work and pilot data, we will specifically address if increases in energy expenditure that accompany exercise result in changes within the PLA related to the release and uptake of circulating signaling molecules (THEME 1), vascular development and reactivity (THEME 2), and substrate storage & metabolism (THEME 3). Our Discover Grant renewal proposes examining the various mechanistic pathways through which gestational exercise may influence PLA biology, and subsequently fetal growth. Since the PLA is the only mammalian organ that serves a vital function before exhausting its usefulness, it offers a large tissue repository to be leveraged for studies. We will compare functionality within the term PLA, collected from pregnant individuals at the extreme ends of the energy expenditure (EE) spectrum (high vs. low EE) across pregnancy and complement this work with cell culture models where we mimic exercise using various relevant stimuli to examine responses in PLA biology IMPACT statement: Even though the placenta is arguably the most important life-supporting organ, we know very little about it. Understanding placenta function is thus critical as it impacts fetal phenotype and long-term physiological and metabolic development. Biologically, it is a fascinating tissue due to its rapid growth and subsequent demise along with its extremely broad range of functions.