title: Effect of fetal undernutrition and postnatal overfeeding on rat adipose tissue and organ growth at early stages of postnatal development.
abstract: Intrauterine and perinatal life are critical periods for programming of cardiometabolic diseases. However, their relative role remains controversial. We aimed to assess, at weaning, sex-dependent alterations induced by fetal or postnatal nutritional interventions on key organs for metabolic and cardiovascular control. Fetal undernutrition was induced by dam food restriction (50 % from mid-gestation to delivery) returning to ad libitum throughout lactation (Maternal Undernutrition, MUN, 12 pups/litter). Postnatal overfeeding (POF) was induced by litter size reduction from normally fed dams (4 pups/litter). Compared to control, female and male MUN offspring exhibited: 1) low birth weight and accelerated growth, reaching similar weight and tibial length by weaning, 2) increased glycemia, liver and white fat weights; 3) increased ventricular weight and tendency to reduced kidney weight (males only). Female and male POF offspring showed: 1) accelerated growth; 2) increased glycemia, liver and white fat weights; 3) unchanged heart and kidney weights. In conclusion, postnatal accelerated growth, with or without fetal undernutrition, induces early alterations relevant for metabolic disease programming, while fetal undernutrition is required for heart abnormalities. The progression of cardiac alterations and their role on hypertension development needs to be evaluated. The similarities between sexes in pre-pubertal rats suggest a role of sex-hormones in female protection against programming.
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain. silvia.arribas@uam.es.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Munoz-Valverde
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Rodríguez
authors.forename: P Y
authors.initials: PY
authors.lastname: Gutierrez-Arzapalo
authors.forename: A L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: López de Pablo
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Carmen González
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: López-Giménez
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Somoza
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Arribas
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000473:pathology; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001835:Body Weight; D005260:Female; D048070:Fetal Nutrition Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D007228:Infant Nutrition Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size; D011247:Pregnancy; D011270:Pregnancy, Animal; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D014781:Viscera / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000473:pathology