Cortisol Regulates Cerebral Mitochondrial Oxidative Phosphorylation and Morphology of the Brain in a Region-Specific Manner in the Ovine Fetus.

ABSTRACT: In adults, glucocorticoids are stress hormones that act, partly, through actions on mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) to increase energy availability. Before birth, glucocorticoids are primarily maturational signals that prepare the fetus for new postnatal challenges. However, the role of the normal prepartum glucocorticoid rise in preparing mitochondria for the increased postnatal energy demands remains largely unknown. This study examined the effect of physiological increases in the fetal cortisol concentration on cerebral mitochondrial OXPHOS capacity near term (~130 days gestation, term ~145 days gestation). Fetal sheep were infused with saline or cortisol for 5 days at ~0.8 of gestation before the mitochondrial content, respiratory rates, abundance of the electron trans

SUBMITTER: Davies KL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9220895 | biostudies-literature | 2022 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature