Folic acid supplementation diminishes diabetes- and glucose-induced dysmorphogenesis

• Maternal administration of folic acid diminishes the risk of neural tube defects (NTDs) in offspring, but whether folic acid exerts a similar effect in diabetic pregnancy is unknown. The aim was to investigate whether maldevelopment in rat embryos caused by exposure to diabetes in vivo or high-glucose concentrations in vitro is affected by subcutaneous administration of folic acid to the pregnant mother or by adding the compound to the culture medium, respectively. Exposure of embryos to maternal diabetes in vivo or 30 mmol/l glucose in vitro yielded an increased malformation rate (71 and 88% NTD, respectively) and lowered somite number and crown-rump length compared with control embryos. When we injected folic acid into the diabetic pregnant rat, or added 2 mmol/l folic acid to the culture medium with high glucose, the embryonic parameters improved (3 and 5% NTD, respectively). The present work shows that administration of folic acid can diminish diabetes-induced maldevelopment. This suggests that folic acid supplementation may have a role in the prevention of malformations in diabetic pregnancy.

Keyword

Abnormalities/*etiology/prevention & control

Animals

Diabetes Mellitus; Experimental/*pathology

Dietary Supplements

Female

Folic Acid/*therapeutic use

Glucose/*toxicity

Neural Tube Defects/etiology/prevention & control

Pregnancy

Pregnancy in Diabetics/*physiopathology

RNA/genetics/isolation & purification

Rats

Research Support; Non-U.S. Gov't

Tail/abnormalities/embryology

MEDICINE

MEDICIN

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)