Cardiac Consequences of Obesity during Pregnancy

Obesity-associated pregnancy complications are linked to subsequent development of cardiovascular disease. Obesity is known to have adverse effects on cardiac function and increase the risk for cardiovascular disease. However, the impact of obesity on cardiac function during pregnancy is not known. The overall hypothesis of this project is that long-term cardiovascular health in females can be markedly altered during the sensitive window of pregnancy. A mouse model of diet-induced obesity will be used to define structural and functional cardiac changes during and after pregnancy. The specific aim of this project is to test the hypothesis that obesity during pregnancy promotes impaired cardiac function in mice. We will quantify cardiac function by echocardiography before, during, and after pregnancy in obese versus lean mice to identify the effect of obesity on the acute and long-term cardiovascular response to pregnancy. In addition, we will quantify cardiac function in obese, age-matched, male mice to determine the effect of pregnancy as a sex-specific risk factor. Endpoints of this project include identification of molecular and cellular targets by which obesity during pregnancy contributes to subsequent cardiovascular disease in females.