Kristi B. Adamo

Dr. Kristi Adamo, recently profiled as one of the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology’s (CSEP) most notable women, leads a diverse, interdisciplinary research program focusing on optimizing women’s health throughout the reproductive years, with an emphasis on pregnant individuals — a group an article co-authored by Dr. Adamo indicates has historically been excluded from physiological research. Consequently, our understanding of the remarkable biological adaptations required to support fetal development and the ways various exposures might result in changes to placenta biology and downstream newborn health has fallen short.

Grounded in the developmental origins of health and disease (DOHaD), Adamo’s Prevention in the Early Years Research Program is unique in its examination of healthy active behaviours and intrauterine exposures related to the promotion of optimum health. Dr. Adamo’s team blends epidemiology, population health, intervention, basic and mechanistic science, and applied physiology, and practises integrated knowledge translation through established collaborative networks across the country.

Adamo’s research program has received support from CIHR, NSERC, IDEaS - DND, SSHRC, PHAC, Veterans Affairs Canada and smaller funding agencies.

To see whether she is accepting new students for thesis supervision, contact Professor Adamo.

Memberships

Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP) Board of Directors: Chair
Canadian Military Women’s Health Research Interest Group: Member
Canadian Society For Exercise Physiology (CSEP): Academic member
Obesity Canada: Member
Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada (SOGC): Member
American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM): Member
DOHaD Canada: Member
Healthy Active Living and Obesity Research Group, CHEO Research Institute: Affiliate investigator

Notable awards

2023: CSEP Mentorship Award
2012–2017: CIHR Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health New Investigator award
2015: CSEP Young Investigator Award (first female recipient)
2015: Obesity Canada’s Faculty Supervisor Award
2009-2014: Ministry of Research and Innovation Early Researcher Award
2013, 2014: W. Garfield Weston Foundation Award in Obesity and Reproductive Health
2011: Canadian Paediatric Society: Dr. Noni MacDonald Award

• Exercise, the intrauterine environment and placenta biology
• Contributors to gestational weight gain management
• Public health and the development of clinical guidelines and tools
• Reproductive health in female members of the Canadian Armed Forces and veterans

Prof. Adamo’s program has three distinct streams.

• STREAM 1 relates to the intergenerational cycle of obesity and weight management in pregnancy. Her team has examined various lifestyle intervention strategies, as well as contributors to the management of gestational weight gain, including cultural, racial and ethnic discrepancies, self-efficacy, health-care provider counselling, social context, and most recently, stigma and bias.
• STREAM 2 is fundamental in nature and focuses on the intrauterine environment and the placenta, the vital organ of pregnancy. One of the only teams in the world examining exercise and placenta biology, the Adamo lab has demonstrated that gestational PA patterns influence nutrient transporter expression and key signalling molecules in the human placenta.

The lab has also shown that, contrary to misconceptions, PA has no adverse impact on basic measures of placenta efficiency. Follow-up research on vascularization and angiogenesis indicates that habitual pregnancy PA fosters a pro-angiogenic environment in the placental vascular network.

• STREAM 3 centres on the development of clinical guidelines and on prevention and health promotion tools, both contributing to, and benefiting from, streams 1 and 2.

Dr. Adamo currently holds research funds from all the Tri-Council agencies (CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC), as well as Veterans Affairs Canada, for her work related to women’s health and DOHaD.

For more on projects or recent publications see the Adamo Lab website or follow us on Instagram or X.

For a more complete list of publications: PubMed

• Corson AE, Macdonald M., Tzaneva V., Edwards CM, & Adamo KB. Breaking boundaries: A chronology with future directions of women in exercise physiology research, centred on pregnancy. Advanced Exercise and Health Science. 2024 Jun1;  1(2); 67-75.
• Adamo KB, Goudreau AD, Corson AE, MacDonald ML, O'Rourke N, Tzaneva V. Physically active pregnancies: Insights from the placenta. Physiol Rep. 2024 Jun;12(11):e16104.
• Nagpal TS, Pearce N, Adamo KB. Presentation of a weight bias internalization tool for use in pregnancy and a call for future research: A commentary. Obes Pillars. 2024 Mar 7;10:100107.
• da Silva ACR, Yadegari A, Tzaneva V, Vasanthan T, Laketic K, Shearer J, Bainbridge SA, Harris C, Adamo KB. Metabolomics to Understand Alterations Induced by Physical Activity during Pregnancy. Metabolites. 2023 Nov 29;13(12):1178.
• Edwards CM, Miller É, da Silva DF, Puranda JL, Souza SCS, Semeniuk K, Adamo KB. Does a history of childbirth impact injury prevalence and mental health in female military members? Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2023 Jul 10. (editor’s choice award)
• Puranda JL, da Silva DF, Edwards CM, Nagpal TS, Souza SCS, Semeniuk K, McLean L, Adamo KB. Characteristics Associated with Pelvic Floor Disorders among Female Canadian Armed Forces Members. J Obstet Gynaecol Can. 2023 Sep;45(9):646-654.
• Darroch F, Roberts C, Jean-Pierre L, Gonzalez Montaner G, Adamo K. Postpartum Women’s Perceptions of Risk of Musculoskeletal Injuries in the Canadian Armed Forces: A Qualitative Research Study. Armed Forces & Society. 2023 Aug 11; 1-21.
• Goudreau AD, Everest C, Tanara L, Tzaneva V, Adamo KB. Characterization of Hofbauer cell polarization and VEGF localization in human term placenta from active and inactive pregnant individuals. Physiol Rep. 2023 Jun;11(11):e15741.
• Mohammad S, Bhattacharjee J, Tzaneva T, Hutchinson KA, Shaikh M, Burger D, Adamo KB. The influence of exercise-associated small extracellular vesicles on trophoblast biology in vitro. Biomedicines. 2023 Mar 11;11(3):857.
• Adamo KB, Semeniuk K, da Silva DF, Souza SCS, Baillargeon JP, Redman LM, Piccinini-Vallis H, Shen GX, Nerenberg K. SmartMoms Canada: An evaluation of a mobile app intervention to support a healthy pregnancy. Contemp Clin Trials. 2023 Mar;126:107066.
• Everest C, da Silva DF, Puranda J, Souza SCS, Goudreau AD, Nagpal TS, Edwards CM, Gupta R, Adamo KB. Physical activity and weight gain throughout pregnancy are associated with umbilical cord markers. J Obstet Gynaecol Can. 2022 Dec;44(12):1262-1270.
• Souza SCS, da Silva DF, Nagpal TS, Semeniuk K, Ferraro ZM, Redman L, Shen G, Adamo KB. The short-term effect of a mHealth intervention on gestational weight gain and health behaviors: The SmartMoms Canada pilot study. Physiol Behav. 2022 Dec 1;257:113977.
• Souza SCS, da Silva DF, Piccinini-Vallis H, Nagpal TS, Paludo AC, Mattes VV, Salas XR, Adamo KB. Thinking ahead: Brazilian healthcare providers also need culturally relevant tools to communicate gestational weight gain recommendations. Am J Clin Nutr. 2022 Feb 9;115(2):588-589.
• Nagpal TS, Liu RH, Myre M, Gaudet L, Cook J, da Silva DF, Adamo KB. Weight stigma and prenatal physical activity: Exploring the perspectives of pregnant women living with obesity. Midwifery. 2022 Jan;104:103186.
• Mohammad S, Hutchinson KA, da Silva DF, McInnis K, Bhattacharjee J, Burger D, Adamo KB. Circulating small extracellular vesicles increase after an acute bout of moderate-intensity exercise in pregnant women. Scientific Reports 2021 Jun 16;11(1):12615.
• Bhattacharjee J, Mohammad S, Adamo KB. Does exercise during pregnancy impact organs or structures of maternal-fetal interface? Tissue Cell. 2021 Oct;72:101543.
• Kusuyama J, Alves-Wagner AB, Conlin RH, Makarewicz NS, Albertson BG, Prince NB, Kobayashi S, Kozuka C, Møller M, Bjerre M, Fuglsang J, Miele E, Middelbeek RJW, Xiudong Y, Xia Y, Garneau L, Bhattacharjee J, Aguer C, Patti ME, Hirshman MF, Jessen N, Hatta T, Ovesen PG, Adamo KB, Nozik-Grayck E, Goodyear LJ. Placental superoxide dismutase 3 mediates benefits of maternal exercise on offspring health. Cell Metab. 2021 May 4;33(5):939-956.e8.
• Shearer J, Klein MS, Vogel HJ, Mohammad S, Bainbridge S, Adamo KB. Maternal and Cord Blood Metabolite Associations with Gestational Weight Gain and Pregnancy Health Outcomes. J Proteome Res. 2021 Mar 5;20(3):1630-1638.
• Da Silva DF, Colley R, Souza S, Mohammad S, Nagpal TS, Adamo KB. How Many Valid Days Are Necessary to Assess Physical Activity Data From Accelerometry During Pregnancy? J Phys Act Health. 2021 Feb 16:1-8.
• Bhattacharjee J, Mohammad S, Goudreau A, Adamo KB. Physical activity differentially regulates VEGF, PlGF, and their receptors in the human placenta. Physiol Rep. 2021 Jan;9(2):e14710.
   

Conferences and presentations

• MacDonald ML, Puranda JL, Tzaneva V, Adamo KB. Associations between physical activity and circulating brain-derived neurotrophic factor throughout gestation. International Biochemistry of Exercise Conference 2024. University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.
• Adamo KB.  Tutorial: Practical and evidence-based approach to implement the exercise and prescription process during pregnancy. American College of Sports Medicine annual meeting.  Boston, MA, May 31 2024.
• Adamo KB. Gestational Weight gain guidelines: where are we now? Obesity + Hypertension in Canada. Banff, AB. Apr 5, 2024.
• Puranda J, Akman A, Edwards CM, daSilva DF, Souza SS, Miller E, Semeniuk K, Adamo KB. Predictors of bone mineral density at the 1/3rd radius position among female Canadian Armed Forces members. Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology Annual Meeting, Calgary, AB Oct 2023.
• Edwards CM, Puranda JL, Miller E, Da Silva DF,  Semeniuk K, Adamo KB. Are parity status or injury history related to knee kinematics in a bodyweight overhead squat assessment in military servicewomen? 6th International Conference of Soldier’s.