بر شاخص هاي رشد و متابوليك موش صحرايي A اثرات درازمدت كمبود حاشيه اي ويتامين

Study of long-term effects of marginal vitamin A deficiency during gestation and two generations on growth and metabolic indices in rat

Introduction: Although long-term effects of malnutrition on growth and metabolic indices have been investigated in several case-control studies but the effects of long-term marginal vitamin A deficiency have not been studied yet. In this regard a dietary study on growth and metabolic indices was conducted in a rat model during gestation and for two generations. Methods: First, seventeen pregnant rats were fed randomly a vitamin A sufficient (VAS) or vitamin A marginal (VAM) diet, from the first day of gestation until last day of lactating their pups. In the next stage from female offspring in VAM group, 14 pups were fed randomly VAS (Recovery group) or VAM diet. Seven female pups in VAS group (Control) were fed with the same diet. After mating and confirmation of pregnancy, feeding adult animals with the same diet continued in each group till termination of lactation. This procedure continued until the puberty of second-generation pups. Weight and height of all animals were recorded at puberty. Furthermore, hematological parameters were studied in all animals after termination of lactating period. Obtained data were analyzed using SPSS (version 10) software. Results: This study showed that marginal vitamin A deficiency can affect height of rats in the second generation significantly. Meanwhile, this vitamin A deficiency was accompanied with significant reduction in serum retinal and increased levels of serum TG, cholesterol, glucose and insulin. Conclusion: These data suggest that chronic marginal vitamin A deficiency during gestation and two generations compromises growth and metabolic indices in rat and these detrimental effects can be transferred to the next generations.