title: Maternal nicotine exposure during gestation and lactation induces cardiac remodeling in rat offspring.
abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of maternal nicotine exposure on heart morphology and fibrosis in rat offspring. Nicotine was administered to pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats by using a subcutaneous osmotic mini-pump at a dose of 6 mg/kg/day from Gestational Days 7-21 or Gestational Day 7 to Postnatal Day 14. A control group received an equal volume of saline by the same route as nicotine. Rats born to prenatal nicotine-treated dams exhibited significantly greater cell width of cardiomyocytes, fewer cardiomyocyte nuclei number, higher β-myosin heavy chain and transforming growth factor (TGF-β1) expression, and higher collagen deposition in heart compared with rats born to normal saline-treated dams on Postnatal Days 7 and 21. Postnatal nicotine exposure further enhances these effects. We conclude that TGF-β1 may be involved in the pathogenesis of cardiac remodeling induced by maternal nicotine exposure during gestation and lactation in rat offspring.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Hsiu-Chu
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Chou
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Pediatrics, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: cmchen@tmu.edu.tw.
authors.forename: Chung-Ming
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D003094:Collagen / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005318:Fetal Heart / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D007774:Lactation; D018811:Maternal Exposure; D018995:Myosin Heavy Chains / Q000032:analysis; D009538:Nicotine / Q000633:toxicity*; D009929:Organ Size / Q000187:drug effects; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1 / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1; D009538:Nicotine; D003094:Collagen; D018995:Myosin Heavy Chains
keywords: Collagen; Myosin heavy chain; Nicotine; Transforming growth factor-β1