Maternal treatment with Butyrate prevents metabolic impairments in the fetuses from overweight rats

FLORENCIA HEINECKE, DAIANA FORNES, JUAN CRUZ OCCHIUZZI, ALICIA JAWERBAUM, VERÓNICA WHITE

Simposio; International Symposium on Reproductive Health 2021; 2021

Maternal obesity programs metabolic abnormalities in fetuses that precede a high susceptibility to the development of fatty liver later in life. Butyrate, a short chain fatty acid product of fiber metabolism from intestinal microbiota, improves lipid homeostasis and prevents inflammation.Aim: To evaluate whether maternal administration of butyrate during gestation ameliorates lipid metabolic anomalies in maternal liver, placentas and fetuses from overweight rats. Methods: Female rats were fed standard (CT rats) or saturated fat-rich-diet (FD rats) for 8 weeks and mated with control males. Sodium butyrate (3%) or vehicle was orally delivered daily during gestation (FDB rats). At gestational day 21, all rats were euthanized. Fetuses, placentas and maternal and fetal liver were explanted and weighed. Triglyceridemia was assessed by colorimetric assays. Placenta, maternal and fetal liver lipid levels of triglycerides (TG), Free Fatty Acids (FFA), Cholesterol (Ch) and Cholesterol Esters (ChE) were assessed by TLC.Results: FD mothers showed hypertriglyceridemia (35% p