Maternal and Fetal Metabonomic Alterations in Maternal Lipopolysaccharide Exposure-induced Male Offspring Glucose Metabolism Disorders

Abstract

Maternal lipopolysaccharide(LPS)exposure during pregnancy induced metabolic abnormalities in male offspring, but the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. The aims of this study were to elucidate the underlying etiologies by characterizing the metabolic alterations in maternal serum and male fetal liver. Pregnant mice were intraperitoneally injected with LPS (50ug/kg/d) from gestational period (GD 15 to GD 17). In the GD18, maternal serum and male fetal liver were collected. The metabolic profiles were analyzed using liquid Chromatograph Mass Spectrometer (LC-MS) techniques. After LPS exposure, glycerophospholipids containing saturated fatty acids were up-regulated, and glycerophospholipids containing polyunsaturated fatty acids were down-regulated in both pregnant mice and male offspring. In addition, we observed that LPS-exposed dams also had increased saturated fatty acids levels and decreased polyunsaturated fatty acids levels. Because these abnormal glycerophospholipids and fatty acid metabolism have been identified as possibly associated with the risk of type 2 diabetes, our study has therefore identified two pathways (glycerophospholipids and fatty acid metabolism) that potentially underlie LPS induced fetal metabolic disease.