Hyperglycemia induces embryopathy, even in the absence of systemic maternal diabetes: an in vivo test of the fuel mediated teratogenesis hypothesis.
Embryonic exposure to excess circulating fuels is proposed to underlie diabetic embryopathy. To isolate the effects of hyperglycemia from the many systemic anomalies of diabetes, we infused 4 mg/min glucose into the left uterine artery of non-diabetic pregnant rats on gestation days (GD) 7-9. Right-sided embryos and dams exhibited no glucose elevation. Embryos were assessed on GD13, comparing the left versus right uterine horns. Hyperglycemic exposure increased rates of embryopathy, resorptions, and worsened embryopathy severity. By contrast, saline infusion did not affect any of these parameters. To assess for possible embryopathy susceptibility bias between uterine horns, separate dams were given retinoic acid (25mg/kg, a mildly embryopathic dose) systemically on GD7.5. The resultant embryopathy rates were equivalent between uterine horns. We conclude that hyperglycemia, even in the absence of systemic maternal diabetes, is sufficient to produce in vivo embryopathy during organogenesis.
University of Iowa Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Iowa City, IA, USA.
Michelle L
ML
Baack
University of Iowa Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Iowa City, IA, USA.
Chunlin
C
Wang
University of Iowa Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Iowa City, IA, USA.
Shanming
S
Hu
University of Iowa Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Iowa City, IA, USA.
Jeffrey L
JL
Segar
University of Iowa Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Iowa City, IA, USA. Electronic address: andrew-norris@uiowa.edu.
Andrew W
AW
Norris
D000818:Animals; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental; D005260:Female; D005315:Fetal Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D005947:Glucose / Q000494:pharmacology; D006943:Hyperglycemia / Q000150:complications*; D038081:Organogenesis; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D064793:Teratogenesis; D014212:Tretinoin / Q000494:pharmacology
D014212:Tretinoin; D005947:Glucose
Animal model; Diabetes; Embryopathy; Fuel-mediated teratogenesis; Hyperglycemia; Teratogenesis