The obese fetal transcriptome

The objective of this study was to identify the tissue expression patterns and biological pathways enriched in term cord blood fetal RNA of obese women compared to lean In fetuses of obese women, 683 differentially regulated genes were identified. This was a prospective whole genome microarray study comparing umbilical cord blood samples collected from eight obese women and eight lean women at term who underwent prelabor cesarean delivery. A functional annotation tool was used to compare tissue expression patterns in cord blood samples from obese and lean women. Pathways analysis software identified physiological systems, molecular and cellular functions, and upstream regulators that were significantly differentially regulated in fetuses of obese women compared to lean.