title: Effects of prevention of coprophagy on pregnant mice--is coprophagy beneficial on a balanced diet?
abstract: The effects of prevention of coprophagy on reproductive performance were examined in ICR mice. Females were treated with restrainers in order to prevent them from ingesting their feces from day 1 through day 17 of pregnancy. The restrained animals fed a commercial diet did not show any clear adverse effects. In contrast, restrained dams fed a purified diet deficient in vitamin B12 exhibited stillbirths (14%) and abortions (7%). Restrained dams fed a diet lacking in vitamin B12 and folic acid also experienced frequent abortions (27%). In addition, six out of 14 restrained dams (43%) aborted when fed a vitamin B complex-deficient diet. Sham-restrained animals, fed the vitamin B complex deficient-diet, but able to ingest their feces trapped by smaller-mesh floors, escaped these adverse effects. Sham-restrained animals fed the commercial diet, however, showed only a slight improvement in their reproductive performance. In conclusion, coprophagy has nutritional significance as long as the diet is lacking at least B vitamins, especially vitamin B12 and folic acid, whereas it almost entirely loses its nutritional significance when the mouse has access to a balanced diet such as the one made available to the laboratory mice in the present study.
authors: Toxicology Division, Institute of Environmental Toxicology, Ibaraki, Japan.
authors: K Y
authors: KY
authors: Ebino
authors: K
authors: K
authors: Yoshinaga
authors: T
authors: T
authors: Suwa
authors: Y
authors: Y
authors: Kuwabara
authors: K W
authors: KW
authors: Takahashi
mesh_terms: D000821:Animal Feed; D000824:Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight; D003303:Coprophagia / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D005494:Folic Acid Deficiency; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D011247:Pregnancy; D011270:Pregnancy, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D014806:Vitamin B 12 Deficiency