**4. Acknowledgments**

The authors thank Michael Arends for revising and editing the English of this manuscript. This study was partially supported by a grant from the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología, México (CONACyT: CB-2006-1, 61741) and Proyecto PAPITT-UNAM IN211111.

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118 Neuroscience – Dealing with Frontiers

exchange. During early pregnancy, amniotic fluid is predominantly an ultrafiltrate of maternal serum. During late pregnancy, fetal urine is the main constituent of amniotic fluid

Newborns oriented longer time to the odor of their own amniotic fluid compared with an unscented control (Schaal et al., 1995; Varendi et al., 1996). Recently, Contreras et al. (2011) analyzed the amniotic fluid, colostrum, and breast milk of 15 volunteer women. Eight fatty acids were consistently found in measurable amounts in the three biological fluids, including lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, palmitoleic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, elaidic acid, and linoleic acid. The total amounts of fatty acids were different in each fluid, with the lowest amount found in amniotic fluid, followed by colostrum and milk. These results suggest that similar to other mammalian species (Guiraudie-Capraz et al., 2005; Pageat, 2001), some fatty acids present in biological fluids could serve as sensory cues of maternal and child identification. Additionally, newborns younger than 24 h preferentially orientated toward their own amniotic fluid and an artificial mixture of similar fatty acids (Díaz-Marte et al., 2010). This suggests that the first recognition of odors occurs during intrauterine life. Some of the fatty acids present in amniotic fluid could be a source of prenatal sensory stimulation, and colostrum odor is a bridge between amniotic fluid and milk (Contreras et al., 2011), thus leading to feeding behavior. Therefore, fatty acids could

1. The functions of fatty acids as energy sources and their structural role in cellular

2. Fatty acids may modify the fluidity of the lipid membrane of cardiac and neuronal cells, impinging on ion channel permeability and decreasing cellular excitability. These conformational changes in the membrane may also modulate some neurotransmitter

3. Decreased excitability produced by long-chain PUFA is related to some beneficial

4. Similar actions on cardiac cell membranes appear to occur in neurons, in addition to neurotransmitter modulation. Some clinical studies of the therapeutic effects of fatty acids on neurological and psychiatric diseases have been conducted, but most of these studies need to be replicated using double-blind controlled designs before definitive

5. Fatty acids are components of amniotic fluid, colostrum, and milk and produce some

The authors thank Michael Arends for revising and editing the English of this manuscript. This study was partially supported by a grant from the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología, México (CONACyT: CB-2006-1, 61741) and Proyecto PAPITT-UNAM IN211111.

6. The sensorial process of odor recognition related to fatty acids has been identified. 7. Fatty acids in maternal-fetal fluids appear to act as feeding cues that guide newborns to

membranes and as precursors of inflammatory processes are well known.

(Loughhead et al., 2006).

**3. Conclusions** 

functions.

effects on cardiac function.

conclusions can be made.

anxiolytic effects.

the maternal breast.

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act as feeding cues, leading to appetitive behavior.


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**6** 

Arpád Dobolyi

 *Hungary* 

**Transforming Growth Factor** 

*Department of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology,* 

**Beta in the Central Nervous System** 

*Neuromorphological and Neuroendocrine Research Laboratory,* 

*Hungarian Academy of Sciences and Semmelweis University,* 

By definition, growth factors are polypeptides that modulate the proliferation of mammalian cells by acting on their receptors at low concentration. Based on similarities in their sequences and their receptors, growth factors can be divided into several superfamilies including platelet-derived growth factors, epidermal growth factors, insulin-like growth factors, the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) family, fibroblast growth factors, nerve growth factors (neurotrophins), erythropoietin, and hemopoietic colony stimulating factors. Transforming growth factors were originally named by their capacity to induce oncogenic transformation in rat kidney fibroblasts (Roberts et al., 1981). Transforming growth factor alpha has a structure and action similar to epidermal growth factor (Wells, 1999) and is not a subject of the present chapter. The TGF-β superfamily includes products of over 25 distinct genes. Comparison of the deduced amino acid sequences led to the definition of several groups within the superfamily, such as TGF-βs, bone morphogenetic proteins, multiple isoforms of activins and inhibins, anti-Mullerian hormone, decapentaplegic protein in *Drosophila*, and Vg1 protein in *Xenopus* (Burt & Law, 1994). There are five TGF-β sequences including three mammalian isoforms (TGF-β1, β2 and β3), which are encoded by unique genes located on different chromosomes (Lawrence, 1996). Besides the regulation of cell growth and division, *TGF-*β*s* can control the proliferation, survival, differentiation, migration, or function of cells depending on the circumstance. The best established activities of TGF-βs are the following: they inhibit proliferation of most cells, but can stimulate the growth of some mesenchymal cells; they enhance the formation of extracellular matrix; and they exert immunosuppressive effects (Roberts, 1998). Based on their effects on cells of the immune system, TGF-βs can also be considered cytokines (Kiefer

**2. Biochemistry of transforming growth factor-βs (TGF-βs)** 

A characteristic feature in the biology of TGF-βs is that they are usually secreted from cells in latent forms. TGF-βs are synthesized as homodimeric proproteins (proTGF-βs). These

**2.1 Release and activation of TGF-βs** 

**1. Introduction** 

et al., 1995).

