The effect of gestational undernutrition on maternal weight change and fetal weight in lines of mice selected for different growth characteristics

Abstract

The present study investigated whether the genetic growth characteristics (fast or slow growing, lean or fat) of a mother influences her ability to partition nutrients to developing offspring. A total of sixty-one pregnant mice of three selected lines were used: fast-growing, relatively fat (FF, n 19); fast-growing, relatively lean (FL, n 23); and normal growth, relatively lean (NL, n 19). On day 1 of pregnancy, mice were given either ad libitum access to food (control (C): n 32) or pair-fed at 80 % of C intake (restricted (R): n 29). Feed intake and dam weight were measured daily. The weight of the mouse, organs, mammary tissue and the weight of fetuses and placentas were determined at day 18 of gestation. Overall, R dams gained less than half the weight of C dams during gestation. NL dams gained the most weight, and FF dams gained the least weight (P,0·001). R dams in the fast-growing lines mobilised significantly more body fat during gestation than the NL line (P, 0·001) and had a greater reduction in mammary tissue growth. The relative weight of the litter increased in R dams of the FF line but was reduced in both the lean lines. Undernutrition reduced fetal and placental weight, and reduced placental efficiency in all the lines. The reduction was least in the FF line and greatest in the FL line. The data suggest that selection of animals for different growth characteristics alters their response to undernutrition during pregnancy, the relatively fat line was better able to buffer its offspring from the effects of undernutrition than the lean lines, regardless of their underlying rate of growth.

Behavioral teratogenicity induced by maternal food restriction: maternal cannibalism and poor reflex development in offspring

“…The developing brain is particularly susceptible to the intrauterine environment and nutrition plays a critical role in the maturation and functional development of the fetus central nervous system (WARNER; OZANNE, 2010). Previous studies have shown that prenatal or perinatal nutrient restriction impairs the hippocampal synaptic plasticity and it adversely affects hippocampaldependent learning and memory tasks; these impairments start in the postnatal period and they continue into adulthood (AUSTIN et al, 1986;DWYERA et al, 2011). Maternal food deprivation (at the level of 50%) has also disrupted the physical and neurobehavioral development of rat pups (ZHANG et al, 2010).…”