Influence of dexamethasone and alpha-ketoglutarate administration to pregnant sows on the level of some hormones in the blood plasma of newborn un-suckled piglets

The aim of the study was to establish the influence of dexamethasone and alpha-ketoglutarate administration to pregnant sows on the prenatal programming of the growth hormone level, cortisol, insulin and IGF-I in the blood serum of newborn piglets assessed just after their birth and prior to suckling. The foetal development is dependent on and determined by hormones such as glucocorticoids as well as nutrient supply through the sow, especially from the digestive tract. All these factors determine pre- and neonatal growth. The experiment was conducted over the final 24 days of pregnancy in sows treated i.m. with dexamethasone at a dose of 3 mg per sow every second day or alpha-ketoglutarate administered orally daily at a dose of 0.4 g/kg b.w. The blood samples were collected from the subclavian vein of un-suckled piglets immediately following their birth and were centrifuged straight away and the serum stored at -25 degrees C until further analysis. Hormone concentrations were determined using ELISA kit. The obtained results indicate that maternal administration of dexamethasone increased the level of cortisol while alpha-ketoglutarate increased the levels of cortisol and IGF I whereas simultaneous administration of dexamethasone and AKG significantly increased the growth hormone. These results of separate or simultaneous maternal administration of dexamethasone and alpha-ketogluta rate during the last 24 days of pregnancy indicated the activation of different mechanisms and different prenatal effects on the levels of cortisol, growth hormone and IGF I in serum assessed immediately following the birth of the piglets