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An Animal Model of Intrauterine Growth Retardation Induced by Synthetic Thromboxane A2

Maternity and Perinatal Care Center, Nagoya University Hospital, Nagoya, Japan; the Department of Pediatrics, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan; and the Department of Pediatrics, Tousei General Hospital, Seto, Japan; Maternity and Perinatal Care Center, Nagoya University Hospital, 65 Tsurumai-cho, Showa-ku Nagoya, 466-8550 Japan masahaya{at}med.nagoya-u.ac.jp

Koji Takemoto, MD

Atsushi Nakayama, MD

Akiko Saito, MD

Yoshiaki Sato, MD

Masayuki Hasegawa, MD

Kuniko Ieda, MD

Shunji Mimura, MD, PhD

Maternity and Perinatal Care Center, Nagoya University Hospital, Nagoya, Japan; the Department of Pediatrics, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan; and the Department of Pediatrics, Tousei General Hospital, Seto, Japan

Objective: Intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) is an important cause of prenatal and neonatal morbidity, and neurologic abnormalities. Although several animal models of IUGR have been developed for scientific investigation, few models approximate the pathophysiology in human fetal growth failure resulting from pregnancy-induced hypertension and preeclampsia. We developed an animal model of IUGR in which fetal growth restriction was induced by administering a synthetic thromboxane A₂ analogue (STA₂) to the mother.

Methods: Timed pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study. STA₂ was delivered into the peritoneal cavity of the pregnant female at a rate of 20 ng/h from day 13 of pregnancy. The effectiveness of this model was evaluated by monitoring the overall growth of the fetuses and neonates and measuring the weight and biochemical composition of individual organs.

Results: Fetuses and neonates from the STA₂ group showed a highly significant weight reduction throughout the observation period from day 19 of gestation to postnatal day 7. Weight reduction near and at term exceeded 10% and became more pronounced during the first week after birth. Fetuses on the 20th gestational day exhibited a pattern of growth retardation characteristic of asymmetrical IUGR in which the weight reduction was prominent in the liver with relative sparing of the brain. However, the decrease in brain weight was more than 10%. The protein, DNA, and RNA contents of the liver were lower in the STA₂ group. The protein content of the forebrain and brainstem also decreased significantly in the STA₂ group compared with the control; however, the DNA content of the forebrain was higher in the STA₂ group.

Conclusions: This animal model may mimic human IUGR more closely than previous models because the growth restriction is induced in a truly chronic manner.

Key Words: Intrauterine growth retardation • synthetic thromboxane A2 • brain-sparing effect

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