Liquid-Diet with Alcohol Alters Maternal, Fetal and Placental Weights and the Expression of Molecules Involved in Integrin Signaling in the Fetal Cerebral Cortex

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Ujjwal K. Rout¹ 

[1] Departments of Surgery, Physiology and Biophysics, University of Mississippi Medical Center, 2500 North State Street, Jackson, MS 39216, USA

关键词: prenatal;    alcohol;    weight;    fetus;    brain;    cerebral cortex;    integrins;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijerph7114023

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy causes wide range of behavioral and structural deficits in children, commonly known as Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). Children with FAS may suffer behavioral deficits in the absence of obvious malformations. In rodents, the exposure to alcohol during gestation changes brain structures and weights of offspring. The mechanism of FAS is not completely understood. In the present study, an established rat (Long-Evans) model of FAS was used. The litter size and the weights of mothers, fetuses and placentas were examined on gestation days 18 or 20. On gestation day 18, the effects of chronic alcohol on the expression levels of integrin receptor subunits, phospholipase-Cγ and N-cadherin were examined in the fetal cerebral cortices. Presence of alcohol in the liquid-diet reduced the consumption and decreased weights of mothers and fetuses but increased the placental weights. Expression levels of β₁ and α₃ integrin subunits and phospholipase-Cγ₂ were significantly altered in the fetal cerebral cortices of mothers on alcohol containing diet. Results show that alcohol consumption during pregnancy even with protein, mineral and vitamin enriched diet may affect maternal and fetal health, and alter integrin receptor signaling pathways in the fetal cerebral cortex disturbing the development of fetal brains.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2010 by the authors; licensee Molecular Diversity Preservation International, Basel, Switzerland.