Use of the Goettingen miniature pig for studying pyrimethamine teratogenesis

Although pigs are suitable animals for experimental teratology, use of miniature pigs developed as a medicobiological experimental animal is essential for this purpose. Miniature pigs are established genetically so that the background data on the naturally occurring birth defects are reliable, whereas the commercial breeds are always improved genetically to seek higher productivity. In this review the authors summarized pyrimethamine teratogenesis in Goettingen miniature pigs. Pyrimethamine administration to a pregnant sow during the early stage of the organogenetic period caused cleft palate and other birth defects, and also hind leg paralysis, a functional defect in newborns.