Maternal obesity during pregnancy has been related with several pathological states in offspring. However, the impact of
maternal obesity on reproductive system on the progeny is beginning to be elucidated. In this work, we characterize the effect of
maternal obesity on puberty onset and follicular development in adult offspring in rats. We also propose that alterations in ovarian physiology observed in offspring of obese mothers are due to increased levels of
estradiol during early development. Offspring of control dams and offspring of dams exposed to a high-fat diet (HF) were studied at postnatal days (PND) 1, 7, 14, 30, 60, and 120.
Body weight and onset of puberty were measured. Counting of ovarian follicles was performed at PND 60 and 120. Serum
estradiol,
estriol,
androstenedione, FSH, LH, and
insulin levels were measured by ELISA. Hepatic CYP3A2 expression was determined by Western blot. HF rats had a higher weight than controls at all ages and they also had a
precocious puberty.
Estradiol levels were increased while CYP3A2 expression was reduced from PND 1 until PND 60 in HF rats compared to controls.
Estriol was decreased at PND60 in HF rats. Ovaries from HF rats had a decrease in
antral follicles at PND60 and PND120 and an increase in
follicular cysts at PND60 and PND120. In this work, we demonstrated that
maternal obesity in rats alters follicular development and induces
follicular cysts generation in the adult offspring. We observed that
maternal obesity produces an endocrine disruption through increasing endogenous
estradiol in early life. A programmed failure in hepatic metabolism of
estradiol is probably the cause of its increase.