Effects of Prenatal Lipopolysaccharide Exposure on Reproductive Activities and Serum Concentrations of Pituitary-Gonadal Hormones in Mice Offspring

Background: Maternal infection during pregnancy is a risk factor for some behavioralproblems with neurodevelopmental origin. This study aimed to evaluate the effects ofexposure of pregnant mice to the bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on sexual behaviourand serum level of pituitary-gonadal hormones of offspring in adulthood.Materials and Methods: In this Expremental study, pregnant NMRI mice (n=7/group)were treated with intra-peritoneal administration of LPS (1, 5 and 10 μg/kg) at day 10of gestation. Induction of the pro-inflammatory cytokines, Tumor necrosis factor-alpha(TNF-α), interleukin-1beta (IL-1β) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were measured in maternalserum 2 hours following the maternal LPS challenge. Behavior in the adult male offspringreproductive activity was investigated using receptive female mice. Concentrationsof testosterone, luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH)in adult offspring serum were measured using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) method (at postnatal day 60, n=10/group).Results: One-way ANOVA showed that LPS administration induces a significant increasein TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 levels of maternal serum. Prenatal LPS exposure reduces sexualbehavior and serum concentration of LH and testosterone in adult male offspring.Conclusion: The overall results suggest that prenatal exposure to LPS increases proinflammatorycytokine levels, affects development of neuroendocrine systems and resultsin the inhibition of reproductive behaviors and reactivity of hypothalamic–pituitary-gonadal(HPG) axis in adult male offspring.