To discuss the recent literature on paternal obesity, focusing on the possible mechanisms of transmission of the phenotypes from the father to the children.
A non-systematic review in the PubMed database found few publications in which paternal obesity was implicated in the adverse transmission of characteristics to offspring. Specific articles on epigenetics were also evaluated. As the subject is recent and still controversial, all articles were considered regardless of year of publication.
Studies in humans and animals have established that paternal obesity impairs their hormones, metabolism, and sperm function, which can be transmitted to their offspring. In humans, paternal obesity results in insulin resistance/type 2 diabetes and increased levels of cortisol in umbilical cord blood, which increases the risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Notably, there is an association between body fat in parents and the prevalence of obesity in their daughters. In animals, paternal obesity led to offspring alterations on glucose-insulin homeostasis, hepatic lipogenesis, hypothalamus/feeding behavior, kidney of the offspring; it also impairs the reproductive potential of male offspring with sperm oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction. An explanation for these observations (human and animal) is epigenetics, considered the primary tool for the transmission of phenotypes from the father to offspring, such as DNA methylation, histone modifications, and non-coding RNA.
Paternal obesity can induce programmed phenotypes in offspring through epigenetics. Therefore, it can be considered a public health problem, affecting the children's future life.
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 5. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 24 September 2024.
All research outputs
#9,656,188
of 33,113,673 outputs
Outputs from Jornal de Pediatria
#244
of 1,088 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#110,919
of 349,295 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Jornal de Pediatria
#10
of 44 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 33,113,673 research outputs across all sources so far. This one has received more attention than most of these and is in the 70th percentile.
So far Altmetric has tracked 1,088 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a little more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 6.7. This one has done well, scoring higher than 77% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 349,295 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 68% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 44 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has done well, scoring higher than 77% of its contemporaries.
