Nucleic acid content and growth of fetal brain, liver and heart during inanition in pigs.
Previous investigations have indicated that gilts deprived of dietary intake for periods up to 40 days are capable of maintaining pregnancy and producing offspring of normal body weight. The present experiment was designed to study the effects of inanition during middle or late pregnancy on growth and on protein and nucleic acid content of porcine fetal brain, liver and heart. Gilts were subjected to prolonged inanition (40 days; 0 kcal/day; water only) during either the middle third (Days 30-70, n = 3) or last third (Days 70-110, n = 3) of pregnancy; controls received a full diet (7028 kcal/day) until Day 70 (n = 3) or 110 (n = 3) when all dams were hysterectomized. Inanition during middle or late pregnancy had no detrimental effect on fetal brain development. Brain weight, cell size (protein/DNA ratio) and cell number (total DNA) were similar in all fetuses at Day 70 or 110. RNA concentrations at Days 70 and 110, protein concentration at Day 70 and total protein at Day 110 were higher in fetuses from starved dams than in those from controls, indicating greater protein synthetic activity in fetal brains from nutrient-deprived dams. Prolonged inanition during midpregnancy had only a limited effect on fetal liver and heart. Only liver RNA concentration and content at Day 70 differed in fetuses from starved dams; however, 40 days inanition during late gestation had marked detrimental effects. Liver weight, cell size and cell number were reduced in inanition as compared with controls by Day 110.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight; D001921:Brain / Q000196:embryology*; D005260:Female; D005326:Fetal Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D005333:Fetus / Q000502:physiology*; D005508:Food Deprivation / Q000502:physiology*; D006321:Heart / Q000196:embryology*; D008099:Liver / Q000196:embryology* / Q000378:metabolism; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism; D009696:Nucleic Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011270:Pregnancy, Animal; D013552:Swine / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors
D005326:Fetal Proteins; D009696:Nucleic Acids