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Assessing the effects of low boron diets on embryonic and fetal development in rodents using in vitro and in vivo model systems

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Abstract

To date, boron (B) essentiality has not been conclusively shown in mammals. This article summarizes the results of a series of in vitro and in vivo experiments designed to investigate the role of B in mammalian reproduction. In the first study, rat dams were fed either a low (0.04 μg B/g) or an adequate (2.00 μg B/g) B diet for 6 wk before breeding and through pregnancy; reproductive outcome was monitored on gestation day 20. Although low dietary B significantly lowered maternal blood, liver, and bone B concentrations, it had no marked effects on fetal growth or development. The goal of the second study was to assess the effects of B on the in vitro development of rat postimplantation embryos. Day 10 embryos collected from dams fed either the low or adequate B diets for at least 12 wk were cultured in serum collected from male rats exposed to one of the two dietary B treatments. Dams fed the low B diet had a significantly reduced number of implantation sites compared to dams fed the B-adequate diet. However, embryonic growth in vitro was not affected by B treatment. The aim of study 3 was to define the limits of boric acid (BA) toxicity on mouse preimplantation development in vitro. Two-cell mouse embryos were cultured in media containing graded levels of BA (from 6 to 10,000 μM). Impaired embryonic differentiation and proliferation were observed only when embryos were exposed to high levels of BA (>2000 μM), reflecting a very low level of toxicity of BA on early mouse embryonic development. Study 4 tested the effects of low (0.04 μg B/g) and adequate (2.00 μg B/g) dietary B on the in vitro development of mouse preimplantation embryos. Two-cell embryos obtained from the dams were cultured in vitro for 72 h. Maternal exposure to the low B diet for 10, 12, and 16 wk was associated with a reduction in blastocyst formation, a reduction in blastocyst cell number, and an increased number of degenerates. Collectively, these studies support the concept that B deficiency impairs early embryonic development in rodents.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dpartment of Nutrition, University of California at Davis, 95616, Davis, CA

    Louise Lanoue, Marie W. Taubeneck, Jesus Muniz, Lynn A. Hanna & Carl L. Keen

  2. US Borax, Valencia, CA

    Philip L. Strong

  3. Murray & Associates, San Jose, CA

    F. Jay Murray

  4. US Department of Agriculture/ARS, Grand Forks Human Research Center, Grand Forks, ND

    Forrest H. Nielsen & Curtiss D. Hunt

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  1. Louise Lanoue
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  2. Marie W. Taubeneck
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  4. Lynn A. Hanna
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  9. Carl L. Keen
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Lanoue, L., Taubeneck, M.W., Muniz, J. et al. Assessing the effects of low boron diets on embryonic and fetal development in rodents using in vitro and in vivo model systems. Biol Trace Elem Res 66, 271–298 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02783143

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02783143

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