Ingestive behavior in rat pups is modified by maternal sodium depletion / La depleción sódica materna durante la preñez modifica el comportamiento ingestivo de la descendencia

Developmental programming by maternal stress during pregnancy is found to influence behavioral development in the offspring. The main objective of this study was to investigate the effect of maternal sodium depletion in rats during pregnancy on the development of thirst mechanisms in the offspring. Pregnant rats underwent 3 episodes of saline depletion, induced by injecting sc 10 mg of Furosemide in saline (0.5 ml). The treatment, given on the 14th, 17th and 20th days post-conception, is thought to induce acute sodium depletion on dams. The offspring were tested for their drinking responses to Isoproterenol (500 μg/kg sc). In accordance to the known sequence of ontogenic development of drinking mechanisms, all groups of pups drunk after being stimulated with Isoproterenol at 6 days of age. The offspring from Furosemide-treated dams drank significantly less than the control group after Isoproterenol (p<0.001). Nevertheless, basal intake (water drunk after vehicle-saline only) was also significantly lower in these pups (p<0.001). In conclusion, offspring exposed to saline depletion in utero, modify their thirst responses at 6 day of age. This confirms that in utero conditions determine thirst responses in the offspring and they could provide adaptive advantages (AU)

Episodios de estrés materno acaecidos durante la fase de preñez pueden afectar al desarrollo normal del comportamiento ingestivo de la descendencia. El objetivo de este estudio es investigar el efecto de la depleción sódica durante la preñez sobre el comportamiento ingestivo de la descendencia. Ratas preñadas son sometidas a tres episodios de depleción sódica por inyección de furosemida (10 mg en salino sc) los días 14, 17 y 20 postconcepción. En la descendencia se estudió su respuesta ingestiva al Isoproterenol (500 μg/kg s.c.). Según la secuencia establecida de desarrollo de los comportamientos ingestivos, todos los grupos de animales beben en respuesta al isoproterenol a los 6 días de edad, pero descendientes de madres tratadas con furosemida bebían menos que los hijos de madres control (p<0,001). También la bebida basal (crías inyectadas con salino) se veía afectada, siendo menor en el grupo de descendientes de madres tratadas con furosemida (p<0,001). En conclusión, los descendientes expuestos a depleción sódica en el útero materno modifican su comportamiento ingestivo a los 6 días de edad. Esto confirma que las condiciones uterinas determinan las respuestas dípsicas en la descendencia y podrían proveer ventajas adaptativas (AU)

Ingestive behavior in rat pups is modified by maternal sodium depletion.

Developmental programming by maternal stress during pregnancy is found to influence behavioral development in the offspring. The main objective of this study was to investigate the effect of maternal sodium depletion in rats during pregnancy on the development of thirst mechanisms in the offspring. Pregnant rats underwent 3 episodes of saline depletion, induced by injecting sc 10 mg of Furosemide in saline (0.5 ml). The treatment, given on the 14th, 17th and 20th days post-conception, is thought to induce acute sodium depletion on dams. The offspring were tested for their drinking responses to Isoproterenol (500 µg/kg sc). In accordance to the known sequence of ontogenic development of drinking mechanisms, all groups of pups drunk after being stimulated with Isoproterenol at 6 days of age. The offspring from Furosemide-treated dams drank significantly less than the control group after Isoproterenol (p<0.001). Nevertheless, basal intake (water drunk after vehicle-saline only) was also significantly lower in these pups (p<0.001). In conclusion, offspring exposed to saline depletion in utero, modify their thirst responses at 6 day of age. This confirms that in utero conditions determine thirst responses in the offspring and they could provide adaptive advantages.

Orthodontic tooth movement after different coxib therapies.

Anti-inflammatory substances used for treatment of pain and discomfort related to orthodontic treatment (OT) could slow down tooth movement. Selective cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors are an alternative to conventional non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The aim of this study was to compare different coxibs on dental movement in the rat. Twenty-eight Wistar male rats (3 months old) divided into four experimental groups were studied: (1) Five rats underwent a 50 g coil spring implantation and received three injections of 0.5 mg/kg body weight (bw) of Rofecoxib in the maxillary gingiva, close to the first molar, on the day of implantation and after 3 and 5 days. Similar procedures were carried out (2) on six animals receiving 8 mg/kg bw of Celecoxib and (3) on five animals receiving 25 mg/kg bw of Parecoxib. (4) For the controls, 12 rats received the same OT but only equivolumetric 0.9 per cent saline solution injections. Tooth movement was measured on lateral cranial teleradiographs after 10 days of treatment. Non-parametric standard techniques (Wilcoxon, H, and Mann-Whitney, U) were used for statistical analysis. Mesial tooth displacement in the control animals was 0.33 +/- 0.07 mm. While no movement was found in rats treated with Rofecoxib, the Celecoxib- and Parecoxib-treated rats showed tooth movement of 0.42 +/- 0.09 mm and 0.22 +/- 0.04 mm, respectively. The differences were statistically significant (H = 13.07; P < 0.004). Celecoxib and Parecoxib, but not Rofecoxib, seem appropriate for discomfort and pain relief while avoiding interference during tooth movement.

C-reactive protein is elevated in the offspring of parents with essential hypertension.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Studies in adults have shown that high sensitivity C-reactive protein (CRP) levels are associated with increased risk of CVD and essential hypertension (EHT). Genetic background is widely accepted as a risk factor for CVD. The aim of the present study was to analyse the association of high sensitivity CRP levels with other cardiovascular risk factors in children and young adults with at least one parent with EHT. METHODS: Fifty one healthy children and young adults (28 boys) with at least one parent with hypertension and 69 (41 boys) whose parents did not have hypertension were recruited prospectively from primary care centres. High sensitivity CRP, fasting lipid profile, blood pressure (BP) and anthropometric variables were obtained for all participants. RESULTS: CRP values were higher in the study group than in controls (logCRP mean difference: -0.69; 95% confidence interval: -1.05 to -0.33), even when differences were adjusted for age, gender, body mass index (BMI) and triglyceride levels (p = 0.01). No differences were observed in BP values between groups. In the study group, 35.3% of the participants had a CRP level > or =1 mg/l compared to 14.5% in the control group (p = 0.009). CRP showed a significant correlation with body weight (rho = 0.28, p = 0.04), BMI (rho = 0.32; p = 0.02) and ponderosity index (rho = 0.28; p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: CRP is significantly higher in the offspring of parents with EHT. A significant positive relationship exists between BMI and serum CRP levels in this high risk group of children and young adults.

Orthodontic tooth movement after inhibition of cyclooxygenase-2.

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of a conventional nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, diclofenac (Voltaren [Novartis, Barcelona, Spain]), and a specific cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor, rofecoxib (Vioxx [MSD, Madrid, Spain]), on the inhibition of dental movement induced with a coil-spring orthodontic apparatus in rats. METHODS: Tooth movement was measured on the lateral cranial teleradiographs of 42 male Wistar rats in 6 experimental groups: (1) 50-g coil spring and 2 rofecoxib injections of 1 mg per kilogram of body weight; (2) similar orthodontic procedure and 2 diclofenac injections of 10 mg per kilogram of body weight; (3) the same orthodontic treatment and 0.9% saline-solution injections; and (4), (5), and (6) 100-g coil appliance and the same pharmacological treatment as 1, 2, and 3, respectively. RESULTS: The difference in tooth movement, measured in the control animals after 10 days of 50 or 100 g of orthodontic force application, was not statistically significant. Reduction in tooth movement in 50-g traction groups reached statistically significant differences; both rofecoxib or diclofenac were effective in inhibiting dental movement. The comparison of the 3 groups treated with 100 g of force also reached statistical significance. Both rofecoxib and diclofenac significantly inhibited dental movement, partially in the case of rofecoxib and totally in the case of diclofenac. Nevertheless, no statistically significant difference was found between the effects of rofecoxib and diclofenac. CONCLUSIONS: There is no substantial advantage in using selective COX-2 inhibitors compared with nonspecific COX inhibitors to avoid interference with tooth movement during orthodontic treatment in rats.

Maternal pregnancy vomiting and offspring salt taste sensitivity and blood pressure.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between salt taste perception and blood pressure (BP) in normotensive adolescents as modified by maternal fluid losses during the first trimester of gestation. Seventy-two healthy adolescents (42 boys) aged between 9.0-21.1 years, recruited from the population-based RICARDIN study, were included. A maternal questionnaire about the duration of pregnancy, birth weight and vomiting or diarrhoea in the first trimester of gestation was collected. The sample was categorized into: "vomiter descendents", those whose mother reported significant vomiting in the first trimester of gestation and "non-vomiter descendents" the remaining. Height, weight, and standardised BP measurement were recorded. Salt gustatory performance was assessed using a behavioral sensitivity test to determine the lower NaCl gustatory threshold, and a behavioral discrimination test, measuring the ability to distinguish among different saline solutions. Salt taste sensitivity showed a significant correlation with systolic BP (SBP) in "vomiter descendents" ( r = -0.66; P =0.003), but not in "non-vomiter descendents". Adjusted by gender, and actual height and weight, salt sensitivity performance remained significantly related to SBP. An association between descendents' SBP and maternal vomiting during gestation exists, adding a new element of evidence to the "Barker hypothesis".

Blood pressure relates to sodium taste sensitivity and discrimination in adolescents.

To investigate salt perception and discrimination and their possible association with blood pressure (BP), 72 healthy adolescents (42 boys) aged 9-21 years (mean 16.1 years) were studied. BP was measured with a standardized technique. Anthropometric measurement and conventional renal function tests were performed. Sensitivity tests to recognize the presence of salt when given simultaneously distilled/deionized water and a low sodium concentration water solution, and discrimination tests consisting of six graded samples of different saline solutions presented in randomized order were used to assess individual gustatory sensitivity. Average systolic BP values were 113.2+/-1.6 mmHg in boys and 109.6+/-1.9 mmHg in girls. Mean threshold level for salt sensitivity was 4.55+/-0.6 mmol/l. Systolic BP and salt sensitivity showed a significant correlation ( r=-0.33, P<0.01) even when adjusting for weight. Discrimination score was correlated with salt sensitivity ( r=0.27, P<0.05). There is a significant association between gustatory perception and BP in Spain adolescents, although a real cause-effect relationship has not been established.