Maternal Food Restriction during Pregnancy and Lactation Adversely Affect Hepatic Growth and Lipid Metabolism in Three-Week-Old Rat Offspring.

ABSTRACT: Maternal malnutrition influences the early development of foetal adaptive changes for survival. We explored the effects of maternal undernutrition during gestation and lactation on hepatic growth and function. Sprague-Dawley rats were fed a normal or a food-restricted (FR) diet during gestation and/or lactation. We performed analyses of covariance (adjusting for the liver weight/body weight ratio) to compare hepatic growth and lipid metabolism among the offspring. Maternal FR during gestation triggered the development of wide spaces between hepatic cells and increased the expression of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) in three-week-old male offspring compared with controls (both p < 0.05). Offspring nursed by FR dams exhibited wider spaces between hepatic cells and a lower liver weight

SUBMITTER: Lee S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5187915 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature