title: Effects of fetal genotype and sex on developmental response to maternal malnutrition.
abstract: The present study aimed to determine whether developmental patterns, adiposity level and fatty-acid composition of fetuses exposed to maternal malnutrition are driven by their sex or their genotype, or both, as these may modulate the adaptive response to the intrauterine environment independently of the maternal genotype. We used a single maternal genotype (purebred Iberian (IB) sows), which was inseminated with heterospermic semen (obtained by mixing semen from Iberian and Large White (LW) boars), to obtain four different subsets of fetuses (male and female, purebred (IB×IB) and crossbred (IB×LW)) in Iberian purebred sows. Analysis of fetal phenotypes indicated a better adaptive response of the female offspring, which was modulated by their genotype. When faced with prenatal undernutrition, females prioritised the growth of vital organs (brain, liver, lungs, kidneys and intestine) at the expense of bone and muscle. Moreover, the analysis of fat composition showed a higher availability of essential fatty acids in the female sex than in their male counterparts and also in the Iberian genotype than in crossbred fetuses. These results are of high translational value for understanding ethnic differences in prenatal programming of postnatal health and disease status, and show evidence that prenatal development and metabolic traits are primarily determined by fetal sex and strongly modulated by fetal genotype.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Reproduction, Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA), Avda. Puerta de Hierro s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cogollos
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Genetics, INIA, Ctra. De A Coruña Km. 7, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Consolacion
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Garcia-Contreras
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, UCM, Avda. Puerta de Hierro s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vazquez-Gomez
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Reproduction, Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA), Avda. Puerta de Hierro s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Susana
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Astiz
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Reproduction, Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA), Avda. Puerta de Hierro s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Raul
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sanchez-Sanchez
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Reproduction, Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA), Avda. Puerta de Hierro s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Ernesto
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Gomez-Fidalgo
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Genetics, INIA, Ctra. De A Coruña Km. 7, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ovilo
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, UCM, Avda. Puerta de Hierro s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Beatriz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Isabel
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Reproduction, Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA), Avda. Puerta de Hierro s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gonzalez-Bulnes
mesh_terms: D050154:Adiposity; D000483:Alleles; D000818:Animals; D017849:Animals, Inbred Strains; D003433:Crosses, Genetic; D005228:Fatty Acids, Essential / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D047109:Fetal Development; D005317:Fetal Growth Retardation / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005333:Fetus / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D006579:Heterozygote; D006720:Homozygote; D007315:Insemination, Artificial / Q000662:veterinary; D008297:Male; D044342:Malnutrition / Q000503:physiopathology*; D039382:Maternal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D038081:Organogenesis; D011247:Pregnancy; D054411:Receptors, Leptin / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D013030:Spain; D034421:Sus scrofa
chemical_list: D005228:Fatty Acids, Essential; D054411:Receptors, Leptin