Impact of Maternal Feed Restriction at Different Stages of Gestation on the Proteomic Profile of the Newborn Skeletal Muscle

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Due to forage seasonality, pregnant ruminants raised in pasture are commonly subjected to a period of feed restriction, which may lead to changes in the skeletal muscle metabolism of the offspring. Such alteration may have long-term consequences for the offspring’s performance and carcass composition. In the current study, we evaluated the effects of feed restriction at different stages of gestation on the proteomic profile in the skeletal muscle of the offspring. The results showed that both periods of restriction, whether applied in the first or last half of gestation, influence muscle energy metabolism of the progeny. Specifically, the restriction in the first half of gestation influences muscle glycogen utilization, fatty acid oxidation, and the energy-investment phase of glycolysis, while the restriction in the second half of gestation influences the energy-generation phase of glycolysis and the production of glutamine in the skeletal muscle of the offspring. ABSTRACT: We aimed to investigate the effects of the maternal plane of nutrition during gestation on the proteome profile of the skeletal muscle of the newborn. Pregnant goats were assigned to the following experimental treatments: restriction maintenance (RM) where pregnant dams were fed at 50% of their maintenance requirements from 8–84 days of gestation, and then feed of 100% of the maintenance requirements was supplied from 85—parturition (n = 6); maintenance restriction (MR) where pregnant dams were fed at 100% of their maintenance requirements from 8–84 days of gestation, and then experienced feed restriction of 50% of the maintenance requirements from 85—parturition (n = 8). At birth, newborns were euthanized and samples of the Longissimus dorsi muscle were collected and used to perform HPLC-MS/MS analysis. The network analyses were performed to identify the biological processes and KEGG pathways of the proteins identified as differentially abundant protein and were deemed significant when the adjusted p-value (FDR) < 0.05. Our results suggest that treatment RM affects the energy metabolism of newborns’ skeletal muscle by changing the energy-investment phase of glycolysis, in addition to utilizing glycogen as a carbon source. Moreover, the RM plane of nutrition may contribute to fatty acid oxidation and increases in the cytosolic α-KG and mitochondrial NADH levels in the skeletal muscle of the newborn. On the other hand, treatment MR likely affects the energy-generation phase of glycolysis, contributing to the accumulation of mitochondrial α-KG and the biosynthesis of glutamine.