title: The influence of chronic stress imposed on pregnant rats on the induced bone loss in their adult offspring.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Stress during pregnancy may alter offspring susceptibility to diseases during adulthood. In the present study, female Lewis rats were subjected to chronic stress during the gestational period, and the effect of this stress was evaluated histometrically on the progression of ligature-induced bone loss in their adult offspring.
  
  
  METHODS
  After confirming pregnancy, half of the pregnant rats were randomly designated as control animals (no stress regimen was imposed), and the other half was submitted to a chronic stress model (immobilization at cold temperature) between the 7th and the 18th gestational day. After birth, 12 male rats delivered by stressed mothers - Group 1 (G1) - and 12 male rats delivered by non-stressed mothers - Group 2 (G2) - were selected. When birthed rats reached 250 g of body weight, a silk ligature was placed around their maxillary right second molar in order to induce bone loss. The non-ligated left side served as a control. Sixty days later, these animals were sacrificed by anaesthetic overdose. After routine laboratorial processing, images of the histological sections were digitized and submitted for histometric measurement using two parameters: histological attachment loss and bone loss.
  
  
  RESULTS
  On the ligated side, G1 presented with greater histological attachment and bone loss than G2 (p<0.05). On the non-ligated control side, neither of the groups presented with alterations in these parameters (p>0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The chronic stress regimen imposed on pregnant rats produced a greater progression of ligature-induced bone loss in their adult offspring.
authors.affiliation: Dental School, University of Cuiabá - UNIC, Brazil. semenoff@uol.com.br
authors.forename: Alex
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Semenoff-Segundo
authors.forename: Tereza Aparecida
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Delle Vedove Semenoff
authors.forename: Álvaro Henrique
authors.initials: ÁH
authors.lastname: Borges
authors.forename: Fábio Luiz Miranda
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Pedro
authors.forename: Leonardo Stephan
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Caporossi
authors.forename: Álvaro Francisco
authors.initials: ÁF
authors.lastname: Bosco
mesh_terms: D016301:Alveolar Bone Loss / Q000473:pathology*; D000818:Animals; D018450:Disease Progression; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D005260:Female; D008026:Ligation; D008297:Male; D008963:Molar; D017622:Periodontal Attachment Loss / Q000473:pathology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D011917:Rats, Inbred Lew; D013312:Stress, Physiological