title: Healthy birth weight results in higher vitamin A storage in neonate piglets administered high-dose supplements.
abstract: A proposed intervention for newborn infants in countries with suspected vitamin A (VA) deficiency is to administer 50,000 IU retinyl palmitate at birth to reduce mortality risk. However, no studies have investigated birth weight effects. In this study, low birth weight (LBW; <1 kg, n = 18) and healthy birth weight (HBW) piglets (>1.5 kg, n = 18) from VA-depleted sows were dosed with 25,000 or 50,000 IU retinyl palmitate (26.2 or 52.4 µmol retinol equivalents) at birth to compare VA reserves. Blood was collected at varying times (n = 3-5/time/dose), and piglets were killed at 12 or 24 h for blood, liver, kidneys, spleen, lungs, adrenal gland, and intestinal contents. HBW piglets had significantly higher birth, death, and organ weights than LBW (P < 0.0001 for all). HBW and LBW piglets, which received VA, had higher liver and kidney VA concentrations (0.18 ± 0.09, 0.24 ± 0.10 µmol/g liver and 13.4 ± 4.1, 14.2 ± 4.5 nmol/g kidney, respectively) than controls (n = 10) (0.051 ± 0.01 µmol/g liver and 1.01 ± 0.43 nmol/g kidney) (P = 0.0061 and < 0.0001, respectively). Total liver (9.75 ± 5.16 µmol) and kidney retinol (204 ± 79.1 nmol) were higher in HBW than LBW piglets (P < 0.0001). Extrahepatic tissues, except lung, had higher VA concentration than controls (P < 0.0001). Serum retinol and ester concentrations were higher in treated than control piglets (P = 0.0028, P < 0.0001, respectively), and significantly changed during the times sampled (P = 0.022, P = 0.011, respectively). Peak serum retinyl ester concentrations, which occurred at 3 h, were higher in piglets that received 50,000 IU (4.2 ± 4.4 µmol/L) than 25,000 IU (2.7 ± 2.3 µmol/L) (P = 0.031). Regardless of dose amount, HBW piglets stored more supplemental VA than LBW piglets when administered at birth.
authors: Interdepartmental Graduate Program in Nutritional Sciences, Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA.
authors: Emily K
authors: EK
authors: Heying
authors: Interdepartmental Graduate Program in Nutritional Sciences, Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA.
authors: Elizabeth
authors: E
authors: Hovel
authors: Interdepartmental Graduate Program in Nutritional Sciences, Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA sherry@nutrisci.wisc.edu.
authors: Sherry A
authors: SA
authors: Tanumihardjo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001724:Birth Weight; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D005260:Female; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size; D011897:Random Allocation; D013552:Swine / Q000378:metabolism*; D014801:Vitamin A / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014801:Vitamin A
keywords: Newborns; retinol; swine