Impact of Maternal Exercise during Pregnancy on Arterial Function and Atherosclerosis Formation in Swine Offspring Fed a High Fat Diet

Previous research has revealed that maternal exercise during pregnancy can impact offspring’s vascular phenotype upto 9 months of age in swine. This work utilized animals that were fed a standard diet and therefore did not develop atherosclerosis. Thus, the purpose of this investigation was to test the hypothesis that maternal exercise during pregnancy will improve femoral and coronary artery vascular function and decrease atherosclerotic lesion formation at 4? and 8? months of age in swine offspring fed an atherogenic diet. Pregnant sows were divided into exercise-trained (n=8) or sedentary (n=8) groups. The exercise-trained group trotted on a treadmill 5 days/week for 25-40 minutes at 2.5mph throughout gestation. After weaning, offspring were group housed and fed a high fat diet for the duration of the study. We assessed offspring feed consumption and cage behavior at 8-months of age. Ultrasound of the carotid arteries was used to quantify in vivo cyclic strain. The left anterior descending (LAD) and femoral arteries were harvested at 4- and 8-months of age in order to assess vascular function and histology. There were no significant differences in litter characteristics between offspring from exercise-trained and sedentary mothers at either time point. Feed consumption, cage behavior, carotid artery systolic diameter, diastolic diameter, and Green-Lagrange circumferential cyclic strain were not significantly different between exercise and sedentary offspring at 8 months of age. Additionally, offspring from exercise-trained and sedentary mothers did not display significantly different atherosclerotic lesion formation or vasorelaxation responses to bradykinin or sodium nitroprusside at 4 or 8 months of age. In conclusion, maternal exercise does not significantly alter behavior or LAD and femoral artery vascular function and atherosclerotic lesion formation in adult swine offspring fed a high fat diet.