Metabolites in the Liver, Brain and Placenta of Fed or Fasted Mothers and Fetal Rats[*]

Abstract

Steady state concentrations of acetyl-CoA and citrate were determined on the 19th day of gestation in liver, brain and placenta from fed or 48 h food deprived pregnant rats and fetuses. Acetyl-CoA concentration in the liver of the pregnant rat increased with fasting while it did not change in fetal liver or the placenta. Citrate content in the liver of the mother decreased with starvation while it did not change in fetal liver. Citrate concentration increased in placenta and fetal brain, but not in maternal brain. The lack of changes in the concentration of acetyl-CoA and citrate in fetal liver may be related to the limited diversion of this structure to fat metabolism during dietary deprivation. Contrariwise, the increased concentration of citrate in the placentas and the brains of the fetuses from fasted mothers may reflect their capacities to utilize lipid products as oxidative fuels during maternal starvation.

Key words

Starvation - Food Deprivation - Fat Metabolism - Acetyl-CoA - Citrate - Fetus - Placenta - Liver - Brain - Ketone Bodies

1 Supported in part by research grant AM 10699 and training grant AM 05071 from the National Institute of Arthritis and Metabolic Diseases, Bethesda, Maryland, U.S.A., and by a grant from the Kroc Foundation.

1 Supported in part by research grant AM 10699 and training grant AM 05071 from the National Institute of Arthritis and Metabolic Diseases, Bethesda, Maryland, U.S.A., and by a grant from the Kroc Foundation.