Catecholamines Mediate Multiple Fetal Adaptations during Placental Insufficiency That Contribute to Intrauterine Growth Restriction: Lessons from Hyperthermic Sheep

Figure 4

Proposed changes in metabolic phenotype of skeletal muscle in growth-restricted fetuses with placental insufficiency. Changes in the profiles of metabolic hormones likely cause a shift from glucose to amino acids/fatty acids as the primary substrates for oxidative metabolism. Intracellular glucose and glycogen are instead converted to lactate, which can then be transferred out of the cell and shuttled to the liver and resynthesized into glucose.