title: Cellular Stress, Excessive Apoptosis, and the Effect of Metformin in a Mouse Model of Type 2 Diabetic Embryopathy.
abstract: Increasing prevalence of type 2 diabetes in women of childbearing age has led to a higher incidence of diabetes-associated birth defects. We established a model of type 2 diabetic embryopathy by feeding 4-week-old female mice a high-fat diet (HFD) (60% fat). After 15 weeks on HFD, the mice showed characteristics of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) and were mated with lean male mice. During pregnancy, control dams fed a normal diet (10% fat) were maintained on either normal diet or HFD, serving as a control group with elevated circulating free fatty acids. DM dams produced offspring at a rate of 11.3% for neural tube defect (NTD) formation, whereas no embryos in the control groups developed NTDs. Elevated markers of oxidative stress, endoplasmic reticulum stress, caspase activation, and neuroepithelial cell apoptosis (causal events in type 1 diabetic embryopathy) were observed in embryos of DM dams. DM dams treated with 200 mg/kg metformin in drinking water ameliorated fasting hyperglycemia, glucose intolerance, and insulin resistance with consequent reduction of cellular stress, apoptosis, and NTDs in their embryos. We conclude that cellular stress and apoptosis occur and that metformin effectively reduces type 2 diabetic embryopathy in a useful rodent model.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.
authors.forename: Yanqing
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.
authors.forename: Fang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.
authors.forename: Mao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Olson Center for Women's Health, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE.
authors.forename: Cheng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Quon
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD pyang@upi.umaryland.edu.
authors.forename: Peixin
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy; D059305:Diet, High-Fat; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D059865:Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D008687:Metformin / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009436:Neural Tube Defects / Q000209:etiology*; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D011247:Pregnancy; D011254:Pregnancy in Diabetics; D013312:Stress, Physiological
chemical_list: D008687:Metformin; D020169:Caspases