These gender dependent differences in the epigenetic response to environmental factors like nutrition may cause for example gender-specific alterations of key hormone systems for cardiovascular diseases in the offspring such as the Renin-Angiotensin- Aldosterone-System (to test this hypothesis we analyzed aldosterone and renin activity in the fetal bood) or pituitary-adrenal axis (for this reason we analyzed cortisol). This evidence concerns the gene REN and cardiovascular disorder.