Grant: Doctoral Award - Frederick Banting and Charles Best Canada Graduate Scholarships

Many women develop diseases of pregnancy, which can harm both mother and baby. Babies who are born too small are referred to as growth restricted. These babies are at an increased risk of suffering from diabetes and heart disease in their adult lives. Some growth-restricted babies are born to mothers who develop a severe disease of pregnancy called pre-eclampsia. Women with pre-eclampsia develop dangerously high blood pressure that can lead to death. These women are also at risk of developing heart disease later in life. There are no effective treatments for these conditions. We propose that increased inflammation during pregnancy causes growth restricted babies and pre-eclampsia. We believe that when blood flow to the developing baby is too little, the baby can't grow properly. The placenta is the organ responsible for nourishing the baby with mother's blood. We believe that the placenta does not develop properly if there is too much inflammation. This can result in reduced blood going to the placenta. Inflammation can damage the placenta, causing it to release substances that can harm the mother's blood vessels. Damaged blood vessels occur in pre-eclampsia. By injecting pregnant rats with a bacterial substance that causes inflammation, we will test if inflammation decreases placental blood flow. We will compare the placentas and babies from these rats with those of healthy rats who were not injected with the inflammatory substance. Using modern tools, we will look at blood flow in the placenta. We will determine if inflammation damages placental blood vessels and whether blood clots form, which could cut off blood flow to the baby. We will measure blood pressure in the rats to see if it increases. Using treatments that prevent inflammation we will see if we can prevent growth restriction and pre-eclampsia. If research can prevent or treat these diseases, it may be possible to prevent diseases like diabetes and heart disease later in life.