Maternal dietary fat intake during gestation and lactation alters tissue fatty acid composition in the adult offspring of C57Bl/6 mice

Abstract 

We investigated the effects of maternal dietary fat intake during gestation and lactation on the tissue fatty acid composition of the adult offspring. Female C57Bl/6 mice were fed high fat diets enriched with lard or safflower oil or chow during mating, gestation and lactation. The offspring obtained from each group of mothers were continued on diets rich in lard, safflower oil or chow post-weaning until 11 weeks of age. Livers and hearts were collected for fatty acid analysis. A maternal diet rich in safflower oil was associated with enrichment of hepatic tissue with n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in the offspring fed chow post-weaning compared to the offspring fed chow throughout. However, a continuous exposure to a safflower oil- as well as lard-rich diet during the pre- and post-weaning time periods was associated with reduced content of docosahexaenoic acid in both liver and heart tissues compared to the offspring fed chow throughout. In conclusion, this study demonstrated lasting effects of maternal dietary fat intake, as well as an interaction between pre- and post-weaning diets, on the tissue fatty composition in adult offspring.

Keywords: Maternal diet, Offspring health, Dietary fats, Tissue fatty acids

Abbreviations: SFA, saturated fatty acids, MUFA, monounsaturated fatty acids, PUFA, polyunsaturated fatty acids, LA, linoleic acid, ALA, alpha-linolenic acid, EPA, eicosapentaenoic acid, DPA, docosapentaenoic acid, DHA, docosahexaenoic acid, CVD, cardiovascular disease, TG, triglycerides, FFA, free fatty acids, GLC, gas liquid chromatography