Parental folate deficiency induces birth defects in mice accompanied with increased de novo mutations.

ABSTRACT: Dietary folate deficiency (FD) is associated with the occurrence of birth defects. However, the mechanisms underlying this association remain elusive. In particular, how FD affects genome stability is unknown. To examine whether a folate-deficient diet can affect genome stability, C57BL/6 mice were maintained on a synthetic diet lacking of folic acid (FA) for two generations. F0 mice received the FD diet beginning at 3 weeks of age, and their offspring (F1) began the FD diet after weaning. Both male and female F1 mice fed the FD diet were intentionally crossed with F1 mice fed the normal diet to produce F2 mice. F2 embryos were dissected and collected at E14.5 and E18.5. The malformation ratio was significantly increased in F2 embryos fed the FD diet for two generations compared to those f

SUBMITTER: Zhao Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8861018 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature