Prenatal exposure to corn oil, CMC-Na or DMSO affects physical development and multi-organ functions in fetal mice

The characterization of developmental toxicity in fetal offspring induced by acetaminophen exposure during pregnancy

OBJECTIVE

Acetaminophen (APAP), an antipyretic and analgesic commonly used during pregnancy, has been recognized as a novel environmental contaminant. Preliminary evidence suggests that prenatal acetaminophen exposure (PAcE) could adversely affect offspring's gonadal and neurologic development, but there is no systematic investigation on the characteristics of APAP's fetal developmental toxicity.

METHODS

Pregnant mice were treated with 100 or 400 mg/kg∙d APAP in the second-trimester, or 400 mg/kg∙d APAP in the second- or third-trimester, or different courses (single or multiple) of APAP, based on clinical regimen. The effects of PAcE on pregnancy outcomes, maternal/fetal blood phenotypes, and multi-organ morphological and functional development of fetal mice were analyzed.

RESULTS

PAcE increased the incidence of adverse pregnancy outcomes and altered blood phenotypes including aminotransferases, lipids, and sex hormones in dams and fetuses. The expression of key functional genes in fetal organs indicated that PAcE inhibited hippocampal synaptic development, sex hormone synthesis, and osteogenic and chondrogenic development, but enhanced hepatic lipid synthesis and uptake, renal inflammatory hyperplasia, and adrenal steroid hormone synthesis. PAcE also induced marked pathological alterations in the fetal hippocampus, bone, kidney, and cartilage. The sensitivity rankings of fetal organs to PAcE might be hippocampus/bone > kidney > cartilage > liver > gonad > adrenal gland. Notably, PAcE-induced multi-organ developmental toxicity was more considerable under high-dose, second-trimester, and multi-course exposure and in male fetuses.

CONCLUSION

This study confirmed PAcE-induced alterations in multi-organ development and function in fetal mice and elucidated its characteristics, which deepens the comprehensive understanding of APAP's developmental toxicity.

Corn oil and Soybean oil effect as vehicles on behavioral and oxidative stress profiles in developmentally exposed offspring mice

Corn and soybean oils are among the most frequently used vehicles for water-insoluble compounds in toxicological studies. These two vegetable oils are nutrients and may induce some biological effects on animals that might interfere with the experimental results. However, their chronic effects on a developing brain have not been reported. This study aims to evaluate the neurobehavioral and brain biochemical effects of both oils on male and female Swiss albino mice. Pregnant female mice were exposed to 1 µl/g/d of either tap water, corn oil (CO), or soybean oil (SO) from early gestation (GD1) until weaning then offspring mice were exposed to the same treatment regimen until adulthood (PND70). Our results showed that developmental exposure to both oils induced body weight changes in offspring mice. In addition, we detected some behavioral abnormalities where both oil-treated groups showed a significant decrease in locomotor activity and greater levels of anxiety behavior. Moreover, our results suggest that continuous exposure to these oils may alter motor coordination, spatial memory and induce depression-like behavior in adult mice. These alterations were accompanied by increased malondialdehyde, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione peroxidase activities in specific brain regions. Together, these data suggest that exposure to CO and SO as vehicles in developmental studies may interfere with the behavioral response and brain redox homeostasis in offspring mice.