EFFECTS OF MATERNAL DIABETES ON BLOOD-PRESSURE AND GLUCOSE-TOLERANCE IN OFFSPRING OF SPONTANEOUSLY HYPERTENSIVE RATS - RELATION TO BIRTH-WEIGHT

1. We studied the effects of maternal diabetes on blood pressure and g lucose tolerance in the adult female offspring of spontaneously hypert ensive rats. 2. Female spontaneously hypertensive rats were rendered d iabetic by neonatal streptozotocin treatment, and then were mated with untreated male spontaneously hypertensive rats. Moderately severe hyp erglycaemia was maintained during the gestation. 3. The birth weight w as significantly lower in the female offspring of the diabetic darns t han in the female offspring of the non-diabetic dams. The systolic blo od pressure was significantly higher in the offspring from the diabeti c dams than that from the control darns at 6 months of age (192 +/- 4m mHg versus 213 +/- 4mmHg, P<0.01). The heart weight was also significa ntly increased in the offspring of the diabetic dams. Both the blood p ressure and heart weight were inversely related to the birth weight. O n the other hand, glucose tolerance was unaffected by maternal. diabet es. 4. Maternal diabetes aggravated the severity of hypertension in th e adult female offspring of spontaneously hypertensive rats. This sugg ests the importance of the metabolic environment during fetal growth f or the development of hypertension.