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Neuropediatrics 2015; 46(05): 299-306
DOI: 10.1055/s-0035-1558434
Original Article
Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York

Antenatal Taurine Improves Intrauterine Growth-Restricted Fetal Rat Brain Development Which Is Associated with Increasing the Activity of PKA-CaMKII/c-fos Signal Pathway

Fang Liu
1   Department of Neonatology and NICU of Bayi Children's Hospital, Beijing Military General Hospital affiliated to Southern Medical University, Beijing, China
2   Department of Neonatology and NICU, Shenzhen Baoan Maternal and Child Health Hospital, Shenzhen, China
,
Ying Liu
1   Department of Neonatology and NICU of Bayi Children's Hospital, Beijing Military General Hospital affiliated to Southern Medical University, Beijing, China
3   Department of Pediatrics, 306th Hospital of PLA, Beijing, China
,
Jing Liu
1   Department of Neonatology and NICU of Bayi Children's Hospital, Beijing Military General Hospital affiliated to Southern Medical University, Beijing, China
,
Li-Ya Ma
1   Department of Neonatology and NICU of Bayi Children's Hospital, Beijing Military General Hospital affiliated to Southern Medical University, Beijing, China
2   Department of Neonatology and NICU, Shenzhen Baoan Maternal and Child Health Hospital, Shenzhen, China
› Author Affiliations
Further Information

Publication History

13 February 2015

17 May 2015

Publication Date:
31 August 2015 (online)

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Abstract

This study aimed to explore whether antenatal supplement of taurine can improve the brain development of fetal rats with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) via protein kinase A (PKA)-Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII)/c-fos pathway. A total of 30 pregnant rats were randomly divided into the following three groups: control, IUGR, and IUGR with antenatal taurine supplementation groups. The expression of PKA, CaMKII, and c-fos mRNA and proteins in fetal rat brain tissues were detected by quantitative real time (qRT)-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Western blot, respectively; and the number of PKA-, CaMKII- and c-fos–positive cells was measured by immunohistochemistry. Western blot and qRT-PCR revealed that antenatal taurine supplementation significantly increased PKA, CaMKII, and c-fos protein and mRNA levels in fetal rats brain with IUGR (p < 0.05). Immunohistochemistry results showed that the numbers of PKA-, CaMKII-, and c-fos–positive cells were significantly decreased in the IUGR groups compared with the controls; while antenatal taurine could significantly increase the positive cell numbers (p < 0.05). So, we conclude that antenatal taurine improves IUGR fetal brain development which is associated with increasing the activity of PKA-CaMKII/c-fos signal pathway.

Keywords

intrauterine growth restriction - taurine - protein kinase A - Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II - c-fos
 

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