Skip to main content

Advertising Disclaimer »

Main menu

  • Journals
    • Pediatrics
    • Hospital Pediatrics
    • Pediatrics in Review
    • NeoReviews
    • AAP Grand Rounds
    • AAP News
  • Authors
    • Author Guidelines
  • Content
    • Current Issue
    • Complete Issue PDF
    • Archive
    • 20th Anniversary Special Edition
    • Topic/Program Collections
    • Blog
    • Questions from NeoReviews
  • CME/MOC
    • CME Quizzes
    • MOC Claiming
    • NeoReviewsPlus
    • Board Review Study Guide
  • Multimedia
    • Pediatrics On Call Podcast
  • Subscribe
  • Alerts
  • Careers
  • Other Publications
    • American Academy of Pediatrics

User menu

  • Log in
  • My Cart

Search

  • Advanced search
American Academy of Pediatrics

AAP Gateway

Advanced Search

AAP Logo

  • Log in
  • My Cart
  • Journals
    • Pediatrics
    • Hospital Pediatrics
    • Pediatrics in Review
    • NeoReviews
    • AAP Grand Rounds
    • AAP News
  • Authors
    • Author Guidelines
  • Content
    • Current Issue
    • Complete Issue PDF
    • Archive
    • 20th Anniversary Special Edition
    • Topic/Program Collections
    • Blog
    • Questions from NeoReviews
  • CME/MOC
    • CME Quizzes
    • MOC Claiming
    • NeoReviewsPlus
    • Board Review Study Guide
  • Multimedia
    • Pediatrics On Call Podcast
  • Subscribe
  • Alerts
  • Careers
American Academy of Pediatrics
Article

The Placenta: The Lost Neuroendocrine Organ

Anca M. Pasca and Anna A. Penn
NeoReviews February 2010, 11 (2) e64-e77; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1542/neo.11-2-e64
Quiz
Anca M. Pasca
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Anna A. Penn
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • Article
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • Comments
  • Quiz
Loading

This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.

Download PDF

Abstract

The placenta long has been underappreciated and understudied by the scientific community. Improper function of this critical organ causes fetal abnormalities, preterm labor, and the most common disease of pregnancy, preeclampsia. Despite the importance of the placenta, understanding of its role in fetal development, especially at a molecular level, is crude. Sadly, understanding of placental function may be compared with the knowledge of kidney function 50 years ago in that researchers can describe the anatomy but not the biology. As an endocrine organ, the placenta produces a wide array of hormones that affect both mother and fetus as well as the development of the placenta itself. Most research on placental endocrinology has focused either on parameters of fetal growth or placentally induced changes in maternal physiology that support pregnancy. The possibility that placental hormones may have direct effects on the developing fetus deserves increased attention. Placental endocrine function can be disrupted by abnormal gene expression, infection, or prematurity, resulting in long-term damage from loss of the normal hormonal milieu. In this review, we focus on placental endocrine function related to fetal well-being, particularly neurodevelopment. Better understanding of this function may open new avenues to therapeutic treatments to improve developmental outcome in fetuses and infants at high risk of developmental brain damage.

  • Copyright © 2010 by the American Academy of Pediatrics

Individual Login

Log in
You will be redirected to aap.org to login or to create your account.

Institutional Login

via Institution

You may be able to gain access using your login credentials for your institution. Contact your librarian or administrator if you do not have a username and password.

Log in through your institution

If your organization uses OpenAthens, you can log in using your OpenAthens username and password. To check if your institution is supported, please see this list. Contact your library for more details.

Purchase access

You may purchase access to this article. This will require you to create an account if you don't already have one.

Offer Reprints

PreviousNext
Back to top

Advertising Disclaimer »

In this issue

NeoReviews
Vol. 11, Issue 2
1 Feb 2010
  • Table of Contents
  • Table of Contents (PDF)
  • Index by author
View this article with LENS
PreviousNext
Email Article

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word on American Academy of Pediatrics.

NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person you are recommending the page to knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
The Placenta: The Lost Neuroendocrine Organ
(Your Name) has sent you a message from American Academy of Pediatrics
(Your Name) thought you would like to see the American Academy of Pediatrics web site.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Request Permissions
Article Alerts
Log in
You will be redirected to aap.org to login or to create your account.
Or Sign In to Email Alerts with your Email Address
Citation Tools
The Placenta: The Lost Neuroendocrine Organ
Anca M. Pasca, Anna A. Penn
NeoReviews Feb 2010, 11 (2) e64-e77; DOI: 10.1542/neo.11-2-e64

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
Quiz
Share
The Placenta: The Lost Neuroendocrine Organ
Anca M. Pasca, Anna A. Penn
NeoReviews Feb 2010, 11 (2) e64-e77; DOI: 10.1542/neo.11-2-e64
del.icio.us logo Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo CiteULike logo Facebook logo Google logo Mendeley logo
Print
Download PDF
Insight Alerts
  • Table of Contents

Jump to section

  • Article
    • Abstract
    • Objectives
    • Placental Function: Historical View
    • Placental Function: Modern View
    • Transport, Metabolism, and Protection
    • The Endocrine Placenta
    • Placental Neuroendocrine Hormones
    • Modern Tools for Investigation of the Endocrine Placenta
    • Models of Placental Function
    • The Future: A Deeper Understanding of Placental Impact on Fetal Development
    • Footnotes
    • References
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • Comments
  • Quiz

Related Articles

  • Google Scholar

Cited By...

  • No citing articles found.
  • Google Scholar

More in this TOC Section

  • Neonatal Encephalopathy: Beyond Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy
  • Perinatal Stroke: A Practical Approach to Diagnosis and Management
  • Updated Guidance: Prevention and Management of Perinatal Group B Streptococcus Infection
Show more 28

Similar Articles

Subjects

  • Fetus/Newborn Infant
    • Fetus/Newborn Infant
  • Journal Info
  • Editorial Board
  • Overview
  • Licensing Information
  • Authors/Reviewers
  • Author Guidelines
  • Submit My Manuscript
  • Librarians
  • Institutional Subscriptions
  • Usage Stats
  • Support
  • Contact Us
  • Subscribe
  • Resources
  • Media Kit
  • About
  • NeoReviewsPlus
  • International Access
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Statement
  • FAQ
  • AAP.org
  • shopAAP
  • Follow American Academy of Pediatrics on Instagram
  • Visit American Academy of Pediatrics on Facebook
  • Follow American Academy of Pediatrics on Twitter
  • Follow American Academy of Pediatrics on Youtube
  • RSS
  • NeoReviews™ and NeoReviewsPlus™ are supported, in part, through an educational grant from Abbott Nutrition, a division of Abbott Laboratories, Inc.
American Academy of Pediatrics

© 2021 American Academy of Pediatrics