engleski

Mother's High Fat Diet Has Influence on Metabolic Characteristics and Ovarian Morphology in Rat Offspring

Introduction: Adipose tissue acts as an important endocrine organ. It secretes substances involved in the regulation of energy balance and secretes various pro-inflammatory cytokines. Disturbances in the metabolism of adipose tissue are the basis of the pathogenesis of many diseases. There is important influence of maternal nutrition on the physiological and pathological processes in the offspring which is usually explained as posttranslational modification of the nucleic acids of offspring without changing the genetic sequence. In this study, we examined the effect of diet of the mother and offspring on metabolic features and histological changes in the ovaries of female offspring. Methods: Ten female rats were randomly divided in two groups. One group was fed with high content of saturated fatty acid food (HFD) and the other one with standard laboratory chow (CD). Female offspring from both groups were randomly divided in two subgroups after coupling and lactation period, subsequently there were four groups of offspring (n=6 each) with different feeding protocol: a) CD-CD, b) CD-HFD, c) HFD-CD and d) HFD-HFD. At the age of 18 weeks in offspring biochemistry analysis was determined, as a weight measurements and BMI calculating. Afterwards they were sacrificed and ovarian morphology was studied. Results: Significant changes were observed in triglyceride (the highest in HFD-HFD group, P=0.001) and cholesterol levels, being highest in CD-HFD group (P=0.002). Ovarian histopathological analysis of offspring of CD mothers shows normal histological characteristics, while in the ovaries of the offspring of HFD mothers large cystic follicles were observed. Discussion: Mother's diet has influence on the regulation of the metabolic and reproductive functioning of female offspring. Conclusion: Maternal HFD consumption predisposes offspring to increased risk of developing metabolic abnormalities and ovarian disorders.

high fat diet; offspring; epigenetic; ovary

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