Maternal Diabetes in Pregnancy: Early and Long-Term Outcomes on the Offspring and the Concept of “Metabolic Memory”

Figure 2

Naïve CD4⁺ T-helper (Th0) cells can be differentiated into either Th1 cells, producing pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-2, IL-12, IFN-γ) or Th2 cells, secreting anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-4, IL-10, IL-5, IL-13). In normal pregnancy as well as in diabetic pregnancy, the Th1/Th2 balance shifts towards a protective Th2 phenotype, whereas it shifts towards a pro-inflammatory Th1 phenotype in macrosomia as well as in obesity. Moreover, reproductive hormone like hCG may contribute to the low Th1 phenotype in diabetic pregnancy associated with the successful pregnancy. Th, T helper cells; hCG, human chorionic gonadotrophin; GDM, gestational diabetes mellitus; (+) upregulation; (−) downregulation.