ODP330 Long-term Effects of Prenatal Undernutrition on Hypothalamic KNDy Gene Expression in Female Rats

Accumulating evidence suggested that the nutritional environment during development periods induces metabolic programming, leading to metabolic disorders and detrimental influences on human reproductive health. The purpose of this study was to determine whether intrauterine malnutrition has a long-term adverse effect on a reproductive center, kisspeptin-neurokinin B-dynorphin A (KNDy) neurons in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC) of the female offspring. In female offspring from 50% undernutrition (UN) dams, first virginal estrus tended to be advanced, and hypothalamic neurokinin B gene (Tac3) expression was increased in adolescents. Conversely, the UN caused the significant suppression of ARC kisspeptin (Kiss1) and Tac3 gene expression after 29 weeks of age. These results suggested that intrauterine undernutrition stress caused developmental programming in KNDy neurons, which changed in their gene expression depending on life stages. Furthermore, our data showed obesogenic effects of prenatal undernutrition in the female rats; UN offspring showed low birth weight, rapid catch-up growth at four weeks of age, visceral fat accumulation, and an increase in calorie intake and plasma triglyceride levels at adulthood. The current study demonstrated that intrauterine undernutrition affected hypothalamic developmental programming in female rats, which induced long-term effects on hypothalamic KNDy gene expression and could influence metabolism and reproductive function later in life. Presentation: No date and time listed