Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.
Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2018 Jan;218(1):B9-B13. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2017.09.024. Epub 2017 Oct 7.
Common disorders of pregnancy, such as preeclampsia, preterm birth, and fetal growth abnormalities, continue to challenge perinatal biologists seeking insights into disease pathogenesis that will result in better diagnosis, therapy, and disease prevention. These challenges have recently been intensified with discoveries that associate gestational diseases with long-term maternal and neonatal outcomes. Whereas modern high-throughput investigative tools enable scientists and clinicians to noninvasively probe the maternal-fetal genome, epigenome, and other analytes, their implications for clinical medicine remain uncertain. Bridging these knowledge gaps depends on strengthening the existing pool of scientists with expertise in basic, translational, and clinical tools to address pertinent questions in the biology of pregnancy. Although PhD researchers are critical in this quest, physician-scientists would facilitate the inquiry by bringing together clinical challenges and investigative tools, promoting a culture of intellectual curiosity among clinical providers, and helping transform discoveries into relevant knowledge and clinical solutions. Uncertainties related to future administration of health care, federal support for research, attrition of physician-scientists, and an inadequate supply of new scholars may jeopardize our ability to address these challenges. New initiatives are necessary to attract current scholars and future generations of researchers seeking expertise in the scientific method and to support them, through mentorship and guidance, in pursuing a career that combines scientific investigation with clinical medicine. These efforts will promote breadth and depth of inquiry into the biology of pregnancy and enhance the pace of translation of scientific discoveries into better medicine and disease prevention.
妊娠常见疾病，如先兆子痫、早产和胎儿生长异常，仍然挑战着围产期生物学家，他们寻求疾病发病机制的深入了解，以实现更好的诊断、治疗和疾病预防。最近的发现表明，妊娠疾病与母婴长期结局相关，这使得这些挑战更加严峻。虽然现代高通量研究工具使科学家和临床医生能够无创地探测母体-胎儿基因组、表观基因组和其他分析物，但它们对临床医学的影响仍不确定。弥合这些知识差距取决于加强具有基础、转化和临床工具专业知识的现有科学家队伍，以解决妊娠生物学中的相关问题。尽管博士研究人员在这方面至关重要，但医师科学家通过将临床挑战与研究工具相结合、促进临床提供者的求知文化、并帮助将发现转化为相关知识和临床解决方案，将有助于探究这些问题。与未来医疗保健管理、联邦对研究的支持、医师科学家的流失以及新学者供应不足相关的不确定性，可能危及我们应对这些挑战的能力。需要新的举措来吸引有兴趣学习科学方法的现有学者和未来几代研究人员，并通过指导和指导，支持他们将科学研究与临床医学相结合的职业发展。这些努力将促进对妊娠生物学的广泛和深入探究，并加快将科学发现转化为更好的医学和疾病预防的步伐。
