148 Nutritional advances in fetal and neonatal development: Introduction to current knowledge

Processes associated with appropriate fetal and neonatal development from the periconceptual through the neonatal phases of life are critical for offspring health and productivity throughout life. The objectives are to provide a brief introduction to the current knowledge associated with nutritional advances in fetal and neonatal development. The concept of developmental or fetal programming is that inappropriate events during critical developmental stages can have lasting impacts on offspring outcomes. This idea has emerged over the past three decades to become a major research focus in both animal and human biomedical arenas. Perturbed maternal nutrition and/or nutrient supply from prebreeding through early neonatal life has long been known to shape reproductive efficiency and offspring outcomes. Nutrient supply to the conceptus varies during the time course of placental and fetal development. Uterine glandular secretions are major suppliers of nutrients during early placental and conceptus development. As the placenta develops and becomes fully functional, fetal nutrient supply becomes dependent on placental function. Research investigating changes in total maternal nutrient supply, including both an under and over abundance, has clearly demonstrated impacts on offspring outcomes. Investigations into supply of specific nutrients on development outcomes has increased rapidly in recent years with results demonstrating that in some cases, even small changes in supply can have developmental consequences. Specific amino acids, minerals, fatty acids, and nutrient supply interactions can influence developmental outcomes. Underlying mechanisms of developmental programming are associated with epigenetic events which are driven, at least in part, by methyl donors and one carbon metabolites. Emerging knowledge associated with how critical supply of specific nutrients influences offspring development and postnatal health, function, and productivity is shaping our understanding of parental, fetal, and neonatal nutrition and creating opportunities for enhanced livestock production through strategic nutrient supplementation.