Effect of maternal diet on ganglioside distribution in fetal rat brain

Female rats were fed a diet with low protein content or with low and high amount of essential fatty acids (EFA). Ganglioside content and distribution were analyzed in the brain of animals at two different periods of fetal life (15th or 20th day). In the fetuses from mothers fed the diet with low amount of EFA the content of ganglioside is significantly lower than in the control group. The three diets resulted in the modification of ganglioside pattern, mainly for the animals on the 15th day of gestation.