Neonatal nutritional rehabilitation of morphological features in facial motoneurons altered by prenatally food deprivation in the rat

Undernutrition and food rehabilitation effects on the locus coeruleus in the rat

Perinatal nutrition plays a fundamental role on the morphological organization and function of a number of brain stem structures. Because little is known of the effects of perinatal undernutrition upon sexually dimorphic structures underlying reproductive behavior, the locus coeruleus morphology of 60-day-old male and female Wistar rats was analyzed. Perinatal food deprivation until weaning significantly decreased the volume and neuronal number of locus coerulus in male and female rats, while nutritional rehabilitation ameliorated these alterations in males but not in females. Data suggest that perinatal undernutrition interferes with the neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying the establishment of sex differences of the locus coeruleus.

A paradigm of undernourishing and neonatal rehabilitation in the newborn rat

Perinatal undernutrition as a deficiency of nutrient availability, affects body and brain developmental processes and promotes recurrent health problems. Thus, altered mother-litter bonds and deficient environmental interactions may interfere with the brain pluripotential capabilities of the newborn. To gather information concerning the mechanisms underlying perinatal undernutrition we designed a paradigm of undernutrition and neonatal rehabilitation in the rat. An underfed group came from pregnant Wistar rats fed with 50% of the diet from G6 to G12 and with 60% from G13 until G21. After birth, pups were daily undernourished during 12 h daily by rotating a pair of lactating well-nourished dams which had one of their nipples subcutaneously ligated. The rehabilitated animals were undernourished pups neonatally fed by a pair of normally lactating dams. Controls received plenty of food during the pre- and neonatal periods. Pups were sacrificed at 12, 20 and 30 days of age. Perinatal underfeeding significantly reduced body and brain weights and neuronal morphometric parameters. Normal neonatal feeding in the newborn ameliorated the damages associated to food deprivation. The current undernourishing paradigm may be helpful to assess brain development alterations, as well as to study the compensatory mechanisms associated to salutary epigenetic influences.