Introduction: The developmental origins of disease or fetal programming model predicts that
intrauterine exposures have life long consequences for physical and psychological health …

During the past decade, a considerable body of evidence has emerged showing that
circumstances during the fetal period may have lifelong programming effects on different …

Overexposure of the developing fetus to glucocorticoids is hypothesised to be one of the key
mechanisms linking early life development with later life disease. The maternal …

Fetal glucocorticoid overexposure is a key mechanism linking early development with later-
life disease. In humans, low birth weight associates with increased fasting cortisol …

Environmental effects on the materno–foetal interaction determine birth outcomes that
predict health over the lifespan. Thus, maternal undernutrition or stress associate with low …

The ability of the early environment to programme the developing hypothalamo–pituitary–
adrenal (HPA) axis has been reported in several animal species. There is considerable …

BACKGROUND: Although it has long been acknowledged that chronic HPA axis
dysregulation impacts on adult neural function, little attention has been paid to the impact …

The hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal axis is a complex system of neuroendocrine pathways
and feedback loops that function to maintain physiological homeostasis. Abnormal …

Studies in several species have demonstrated that an adverse early environment can
influence the development of the autonomic nervous system and hypothalamic–pituitary …

Fetal programming of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis was proposed as one
mechanism underlying the link between prenatal stress, adverse birth outcomes (particularly …