Prolonged prenatal hypernatremia alters neuroendocrine and electrolyte homeostasis in neonatal sheep

Arginine vasopressin (AVP) is a neuroendocrine hormone synthesized in the hypothalamus, and is stored and secreted by the posterior pituitary gland in response to stimuli such as plasma hypertonicity and hypotension. The primary physiologic roles of AVP include plasma osmolality and blood pressure regulation. We have previously demonstrated that chronic prenatal plasma hypertonicity alters the AVP regulatory pathway in newborn lambs. The objectives of the present study were to evaluate prolonged effects of antenatal plasma hypertonicity on neonatal plasma osmoregulation. Pregnant ewes at 119 +/- 3 days of gestation were water restricted to achieve and maintain hypertonicity until normal-term delivery. After delivery, ewes were provided food and water ad libitum and lambs were allowed maternal nursing. At the age of 28 days, blood samples were obtained for the analysis of plasma osmolality, electrolytes, and AVP levels from study (n= 5) and age-matched control (n= 6) lambs. Subsequently, lambs were euthanized, and the pituitary and hypothalamus were processed for the determination of pituitary AVP content by radioimmunoassay, and AVP gene expression by Northern analysis. In response to water restriction, maternal plasma osmolality significantly increased (306 +/- 1.1 to 326 +/- 1.2 mOsm/kg, P< 0.001). At the age of 28 days, plasma sodium level was higher in study (prenatally dehydrated) than control lambs (144.6 +/- 0.4 vs 142.6 +/- 0.3,P< 0.05). Study lambs had higher plasma AVP concentrations than the control lambs (4.1 +/- 0.4 vs 1.7 +/- 0.4 pg/ml,P< 0.05). Similarly, total pituitary AVP content was higher in thein utero hypertonic lambs than in the control lambs (6.5 +/- 1.0 vs 2.8 +/-1.2 microg, P< 0.05). However, there was no difference in hypothalamic AVP mRNA levels between the two groups. The present study demonstrates that chronic maternal and fetal plasma hypertonicity has prolonged effects on pituitary and plasma AVP, as well as plasma sodium in neonatal lambs, providing further evidence suggesting prenatal imprinting of osmoregulation through at least 1 month of age.