Peter Blundell
Oregon National Primate Research Center
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Publication
Featured researches published by Peter Blundell.
Nature Communications | 2014
Jun Ma; Amanda Prince; David A. Bader; Min Hu; Radhika Ganu; Karalee Baquero; Peter Blundell; R. Alan Harris; Antonio Frias; Kevin L. Grove; Kjersti Aagaard
The intestinal microbiome is a unique ecosystem and an essential mediator of metabolism and obesity in mammals. However, studies investigating the impact of the diet on the establishment of the gut microbiome early in life are generally lacking, and most notably so in primate models. Here we report that a high-fat maternal or postnatal diet, but not obesity per se, structures the offspring’s intestinal microbiome in Macaca fuscata (Japanese macaque). The resultant microbial dysbiosis is only partially corrected by a low-fat, control diet after weaning. Unexpectedly, early exposure to a high-fat diet diminished the abundance of non-pathogenic Campylobacter in the juvenile gut, suggesting a potential role for dietary fat in shaping commensal microbial communities in primates. Our data challenge the concept of an obesity-causing gut microbiome, and rather provide evidence for a contribution of the maternal diet in establishing the microbiota, which in turn affects intestinal maintenance of metabolic health.
Obesity | 2015
Heidi M. Rivera; Paul Kievit; Melissa A. Kirigiti; Leigh Ann Bauman; Karalee Baquero; Peter Blundell; Tyler Dean; Jeanette C. Valleau; Diana Takahashi; Tim Frazee; Luke Douville; Jordan Majer; M. Susan Smith; Kevin L. Grove; Elinor L. Sullivan
To utilize a nonhuman primate model to examine the impact of maternal high‐fat diet (HFD) consumption and pre‐pregnancy obesity on offspring intake of palatable food and to examine whether maternal HFD consumption impaired development of the dopamine system, critical for the regulation of hedonic feeding.
Scientific Reports | 2016
R. Alan Harris; Callison E. Alcott; Elinor L. Sullivan; Diana Takahashi; Carrie E. McCurdy; Sarah Comstock; Karalee Baquero; Peter Blundell; Antonio Frias; Maike K. Kahr; Melissa Suter; Stephanie R. Wesolowski; Jacob E. Friedman; Kevin L. Grove; Kjersti Aagaard
Maternal obesity contributes to an increased risk of lifelong morbidity and mortality for both the mother and her offspring. In order to better understand the molecular mechanisms underlying these risks, we previously established and extensively characterized a primate model in Macaca fuscata (Japanese macaque). In prior studies we have demonstrated that a high fat, caloric dense maternal diet structures the offspring’s epigenome, metabolome, and intestinal microbiome. During the course of this work we have consistently observed that a 36% fat diet leads to obesity in the majority, but not all, of exposed dams. In the current study, we sought to identify the genomic loci rendering resistance to obesity despite chronic consumption of a high fat diet in macaque dams. Through extensive phenotyping together with exon capture array and targeted resequencing, we identified three novel single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), two in apolipoprotein B (APOB) and one in phospholipase A2 (PLA2G4A) that significantly associated with persistent weight stability and insulin sensitivity in lean macaques. By application of explicit orthogonal modeling (NOIA), we estimated the polygenic and interactive nature of these loci against multiple metabolic traits and their measures (i.e., serum LDL levels) which collectively render an obesity resistant phenotype in our adult female dams.
Reproductive Sciences | 2018
Victoria H. J. Roberts; Jamie O. Lo; Katherine S. Lewandowski; Peter Blundell; Kevin L. Grove; Christopher D. Kroenke; Elinor L. Sullivan; Charles T. Roberts; Antonio Frias
Maternal malnutrition during pregnancy impacts fetal growth, with developmental consequences that extend to later life outcomes. In underdeveloped countries, this malnutrition typically takes the form of poor dietary protein content and quality, even if adequate calories are consumed. Here, we report the establishment of a nonhuman primate model of gestational protein restriction (PR) in order to understand how placental function and pregnancy outcomes are affected by protein deficiency. Rhesus macaques were assigned to either a control diet containing 26% protein or switched to a 13% PR diet prior to conception and maintained on this PR diet throughout pregnancy. Standard fetal biometry, Doppler ultrasound of uteroplacental blood flow, ultrasound-guided amniocentesis, and contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CE-US) to assess placental perfusion were performed mid-gestation (gestational day 85 [G85] where term is G168) and in the early third trimester (G135). Our data demonstrate that a 50% reduction in dietary protein throughout gestation results in reduced placental perfusion, fetal growth restriction, and a 50% rate of pregnancy loss. In addition, we demonstrate reduced total protein content and evidence of fetal hypoxia in the amniotic fluid. This report highlights the use of CE-US for in vivo assessment of placental vascular function. The ability to detect placental dysfunction, and thus a compromised pregnancy, early in gestation, may facilitate the development of interventional strategies to optimize clinical care and improve long-term offspring outcomes, which are future areas of study in this new model.
American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology | 2016
Amanda Prince; Jun Ma; Karalee Baquero; Peter Blundell; Diana Takahashi; Kevin L. Grove; Kjersti Aagaard
BMC Microbiology | 2018
Ryan M. Pace; Amanda Prince; Jun Ma; Benjamin Belfort; Alexia S. Harvey; Min Hu; Karalee Baquero; Peter Blundell; Diana Takahashi; Tyler Dean; Paul Kievit; Elinor L. Sullivan; Jacob E. Friedman; Kevin L. Grove; Kjersti Aagaard
American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology | 2016
Amanda Prince; Jun Ma; Karalee Baquero; Peter Blundell; Diana Takahashi; Kevin L. Grove; Kjersti Aagaard
Archive | 2017
Peter Blundell; Mike Smith
American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology | 2017
Ryan M. Pace; Amanda Prince; Jun Ma; Alan Harris; Karalee Baquero; Peter Blundell; Diana Takahashi; Tyler Dean; Paul Kievit; Elinor L. Sullivan; Jacob E. Friedman; Kevin L. Grove; Kjersti Aagaard
American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology | 2017
Amanda Prince; Derrick Chu; Kristen M. Meyer; Jun Ma; Karalee Baquero; Peter Blundell; Tyler Dean; Diana Takahashi; Jed Friedman; Kevin L. Grove; Kjersti Aagaard