maternal exposure to d-galactose reduces ovarian reserve in female rat offspring later in life

Background: embryonic life is critical for the formation of ovaries in mammals, and the intrauterine environment may affect ovarian reserve. objectives: the present study aimed to investigate the impact of prenatal d-galactose exposure on ovarian reserve in female rat offspring in their later lives. methods: ten pregnant wistar rats were randomly divided into two groups. in one group, rats were fed with 35% d-galactoseenriched food from the third day to the end of pregnancy, and in the other group, rats were fed with a standard diet throughout pregnancy. female offspring (prenatally galactose-exposed rats and non-exposed control rats) were examined in terms of hormonal levels [anti-mullerian hormones (amh), follicle-stimulating hormone (fsh), and estradiol (e2)] and ovarian histology at 45 - 50, 105 - 110, and 180 - 185 days of their age. results: the number of primordial follicles significantly decreased time-dependently in prenatally galactose-exposed rats compared to controls (p-value = 0.002). in addition, decreases in amh (3.25 vs. 7.5 ng/ml; p = 0.000) and e2 (7.9 vs. 19.5 pg/ml; p = 0.000) and increases in fsh (6.5 vs. 0.8 miu/ml; p < 0.007) were observed in galactose-exposed rats compared to controls at 45 - 50 days of age. conclusions: prenatal exposure to d-galactose negatively affects ovarian reserve in female rats in their later lives. however, further investigation is needed to confirm our findings and explore underlying mechanisms.