Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of maternal nicotine exposure on heart morphology and fibrosis in rat offspring. Nicotine was administered to pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats by using a subcutaneous osmotic mini-pump at a dose of 6. mg/kg/day from Gestational Days 7-21 or Gestational Day 7 to Postnatal Day 14. A control group received an equal volume of saline by the same route as nicotine. Rats born to prenatal nicotine-treated dams exhibited significantly greater cell width of cardiomyocytes, fewer cardiomyocyte nuclei number, higher β-myosin heavy chain and transforming growth factor (TGF-β1) expression, and higher collagen deposition in heart compared with rats born to normal saline-treated dams on Postnatal Days 7 and 21. Postnatal nicotine exposure further enhances these effects. We conclude that TGF-β1 may be involved in the pathogenesis of cardiac remodeling induced by maternal nicotine exposure during gestation and lactation in rat offspring.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 4-10 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Reproductive Toxicology |
| Volume | 50 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Dec 1 2014 |
Keywords
- Collagen
- Myosin heavy chain
- Nicotine
- Transforming growth factor-β1
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Toxicology
- Medicine(all)