Prenatal programming in an obese swine model: sex-related effects of maternal energy restriction on morphology, metabolism and hypothalamic gene expression.

Maternal energy restriction during pregnancy predisposes to metabolic alterations in the offspring. The present study was designed to evaluate phenotypic and metabolic consequences following maternal undernutrition in an obese pig model and to define the potential role of hypothalamic gene expression in programming effects. Iberian sows were fed a control or a 50 % restricted diet for the last two-thirds of gestation. Newborns were assessed for body and organ weights, hormonal and metabolic status, and hypothalamic expression of genes implicated in energy homeostasis, glucocorticoid function and methylation. Weight and adiposity were measured in adult littermates. Newborns of the restricted sows were lighter (P <0·01), but brain growth was spared. The plasma concentration of TAG was lower in the restricted newborns than in the control newborns of both the sexes (P <0·01), while the concentration of cortisol was higher in females born to the restricted sows (P <0·04), reflecting a situation of metabolic stress by nutrient insufficiency. A lower hypothalamic expression of anorexigenic peptides (LEPR and POMC, P <0·01 and P <0·04, respectively) was observed in females born to the restricted sows, but no effect was observed in the males. The expression of HSD11B1 gene was down-regulated in the restricted animals (P <0·05), suggesting an adaptive mechanism for reducing the harmful effects of elevated concentrations of cortisol. At 4 and 7 months of age, the restricted females were heavier and fatter than the controls (P< 0·01). Maternal feed restriction induces asymmetrical growth retardation and metabolic alterations in the offspring. Differences in gene expression at birth and higher growth and adiposity in adulthood suggest a female-specific programming effect for a positive energy balance, possibly due to overexposure to endogenous stress-induced glucocorticoids.

Beef Nutritional Characteristics, Fat Profile and Blood Metabolic Markers from Purebred Wagyu, Crossbred Wagyu and Crossbred European Steers Raised on a Fattening Farm in Spain.

A high intramuscular fat content characterizes Wagyu (WY) cattle breed. Our objective was to compare beef from WY, WY-by-Angus, or Wangus (WN) steers with European, Angus-by-Charolais-Limousine crossbred steers (ACL), considering metabolic biomarkers pre-slaughtering and nutritional characteristics, including health-related indexes of the lipid fraction. The fattening system with olein-rich diets and no exercise restriction included 82 steers, 24 WY, 29 WN, and 29 ACL. The slaughter ages and weights were (median and interquartile range) 38.4 mo.-old (34.9-40.3 mo.) and 840 kg (785-895 kg) for WY; for WN, 30.6 mo. (26.9-36.5 mo.) and 832 kg (802-875 kg), and for ACL steers, 20.3 mo.-old (19.0-22.7 mo.) and 780 kg (715-852 kg). Blood lipid-related metabolites, except for non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) and low-density level cholesterol (LDL), were higher in WY and WN than in ACL, while glucose was lower in WY and WN. Leptin was higher in WN than in ACL. Pre-slaughtering values of plasma HDL underscored as a possible metabolic biomarker directly related to beef quality. The amino-acid content in beef did not differ among experimental groups, except for more crude protein in ACL. Compared to ACL, WY steers showed higher intramuscular fat in sirloin (51.5 vs. 21.9%) and entrecote (59.6 vs. 27.6%), more unsaturated fatty acids in entrecote (55.8 vs. 53.0%), and more oleic acid in sirloin (46 vs. 41.3%) and entrecote (47.5 vs. 43.3%). Compared to ACL entrecote, WY and WN showed better atherogenic (0.6 and 0.55 vs. 0.69), thrombogenicity (0.82 and 0.92 vs. 1.1), and hypocholesterolemic/hypercholesterolemic index (1.9 and 2.1 vs. 1.7). Therefore, beef's nutritional characteristics depend on breed/crossbred, slaughtering age and cut, with WY and WN entrecote samples showing a healthier lipid fraction.

Phenotypic characterization by high-resolution three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging evidences differential effects of embryo genotype on intrauterine growth retardation in NOS3-deficient mice.

The Nos3-knockout mouse, deficient for endothelial constitutive nitric oxide synthase (NOS3), is affected by a reduction in the number and weight of the embryos and constitutes a good model for some features of preeclampsia and intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR). Deficiencies in conceptus growth and survival may result from factors inherent in the embryo itself or from deficiencies in uterine function. In the current study, we aimed to determine the effects of embryonic genotype independently of maternal genotype, which can affect uterine environment. Therefore, by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), we characterized the phenotypes of NOS3-defective (Nos3(-/-); n = 6), normal wild-type (Nos3(+/+); n = 5), and heterozygous (Nos3(+/-); n = 16) mouse fetuses. All of them were littermates obtained by breeding heterozygous mice (Nos3(+/-)); therefore, the maternal genotype was the same for all the fetuses. At Day 13.5 (i.e., Theiler stage TS 21-22), females were anesthetized and scanned with three-dimensional MRI. Analysis of the different measurements of the embryos and the gestational annexes showed no significant differences between Nos3(+/+) and Nos3(+/-); however, there was a trend toward larger sizes in Nos3(+/+), and values in Nos3(-/-) were significantly smaller than in Nos3(+/+) and Nos3(+/-). The reduction in the crown-rump length of Nos3(-/-) reached 12% when compared to Nos3(+/+) (P < 0.05); the effect was higher for head measurements (16% for occipito-snout length and biparietal diameter, P < 0.05 for both) and trunk diameter (17%, P < 0.05). Overall, the maximum area of fetuses in longitudinal planes decreased 27% (P < 0.05) when comparing Nos3(-/-) to wild-type Nos3(+/+). Finally, Nos3(-/-) showed a reduction of 29% in the maximum thickness of the placenta, which may be related to the appearance of IUGR due to compromised nutritional delivery to the fetus.

Early-postnatal changes in adiposity and lipids profile by transgenerational developmental programming in swine with obesity/leptin resistance.

Maternal malnutrition during pregnancy, both deficiency and excess, induces changes in the intrauterine environment and the metabolic status of the offspring, playing a key role in the growth, status of fitness/obesity and appearance of metabolic disorders during postnatal life. There is increasing evidence that these effects may not be only limited to the first generation of descendants, the offspring directly exposed to metabolic challenges, but to subsequent generations. This study evaluated, in a swine model of obesity/leptin resistance, the existence and extent of transgenerational developmental programming effects. Pre- and postnatal development, adiposity and metabolic features were assessed in the second generation of piglets, descendant of sows exposed to either undernutrition or overnutrition during pregnancy. The results indicated that these piglets exhibited early-postnatal increases in adiposity and disturbances in lipid profiles compatible with the early prodrome of metabolic syndrome, with liver tissue also displaying evidence of paediatric liver disease. These features indicative of early-life metabolic disorders were more evident in the males that were descended from overfed grandmothers and during the transition from milk to solid feeding. Thus, this study provides evidence supporting transgenerational developmental programming and supports the necessity for the development of strategies for avoiding the current epidemics of childhood overweight and obesity.

Fetal and early-postnatal developmental patterns of obese-genotype piglets exposed to prenatal programming by maternal over- and undernutrition.

The present study evaluated the effect of nutritional imbalances during pregnancy, either by excess or deficiency, on fertility and conceptus development in obese-genotype swine (Iberian pig). Twenty-five multiparous sows were fed, from mating to farrowing, with a standard diet fulfilling either 1.6 folds their daily maintenance requirements for pregnancy (overfed group, n = 12) or only the 50% of such requirements (underfed group, n = 13). Ten out of 12 overfed but only two out of 13 underfed sows became pregnant (P<0.005). Fetal development was determined in the pregnant females at Days 35, 50, 75 and 90 of pregnancy. The embryos from undernourished sows were smaller than the embryos from overfed females as early as at 35 days of pregnancy (P<0.05) and remained smaller until Day 90 of gestation. However, at the end of pregnancy, there were significant changes in the developmental patterns of fetuses. Thus, weight and size of the offspring from both nutritional treatments were finally similar at delivery; the same was found at weaning. There was thereafter a sex-related effect on the growth during the early-postnatal period, with male piglets of both nutritional origins being significantly heavier and more corpulent at weaning that their sisters (P<0.05). In conclusion, fetal growth conditioned by malnutrition from periconceptional stages is mainly regulated at the end of the pregnancy, so that ensure an adequate body-weight and size and, therefore, the survival of the offspring. Afterwards, the early-postnatal development of the offspring is affected by sex, independently from nutritional origin, with male piglets growing faster than females.

Maternal malnutrition and offspring sex determine juvenile obesity and metabolic disorders in a swine model of leptin resistance.

The present study aimed to determine, in a swine model of leptin resistance, the effects of type and timing of maternal malnutrition on growth patterns, adiposity and metabolic features of the progeny when exposed to an obesogenic diet during their juvenile development and possible concomitant effects of the offspring sex. Thus, four groups were considered. A CONTROL group involved pigs born from sows fed with a diet fulfilling their daily maintenance requirements for pregnancy. The treated groups involved the progeny of females fed with the same diet but fulfilling either 160% or 50% of pregnancy requirements during the entire gestation (OVERFED and UNDERFED, respectively) or 100% of requirements until Day 35 of pregnancy and 50% of such amount from Day 36 onwards (LATE-UNDERFED). OVERFED and UNDERFED offspring were more prone to higher corpulence and fat deposition from early postnatal stages, during breast-feeding; adiposity increased significantly when exposed to obesogenic diets, especially in females. The effects of sex were even more remarkable in LATE-UNDERFED offspring, which had similar corpulence to CONTROL piglets; however, females showed a clear predisposition to obesity. Furthermore, the three groups of pigs with maternal malnutrition showed evidences of metabolic syndrome and, in the case of individuals born from OVERFED sows, even of insulin resistance and the prodrome of type-2 diabetes. These findings support the main role of early nutritional programming in the current rise of obesity and associated diseases in ethnics with leptin resistance.

The effects of age and reproductive status on blood parameters of carbohydrate and lipid metabolism in Iberian obese sows.

The effects of age and reproductive status on carbohydrate and lipid metabolism of Iberian sows reared in an intensive management system were examined. These animals, with age, are predisposed to hyperglycaemia and dyslipidemia which may develop in response to nutritional challenges during lactation. At weaning, high levels of glucose, triglycerides and low-density lipoproteins cholesterol (LDL-c) with low high-density lipoproteins cholesterol (HDL-c) are indicative of insulin resistance.