Alcohol exposure during pregnancy induces cardiac mitochondrial damage in offspring mice

Background: Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) has been linked to congenital heart disease and fetal alcohol syndrome. The heart primarily relies on mitochondria to generate energy, so impaired mitochondrial function due to alcohol exposure can significantly affect cardiac development and function. Our study aimed to investigate the impact of PAE on myocardial and mitochondrial functions in offspring mice.

Methods: We administered 30% alcohol (3 g/kg) to pregnant C57BL/6 mice during the second trimester. We assessed cardiac function by transthoracic echocardiography, observed myocardial structure and fibrosis through staining tests and electron transmission microscopy, and detected cardiomyocyte Apoptosis with dUTP nick end labeling assay and real-time quantitative PCR. Additionally, we measured the Reactive Oxygen Species content, ATP level, and mitochondrial DNA copy number in myocardial mitochondria. Mitochondrial damage was evaluated by assessing the level of mitochondrial membrane potential and the opening degree of mitochondrial permeability transition pores.

Results: Our findings revealed that PAE caused cardiac systolic dysfunction, ventricular enlargement, thinned ventricular wall, cardiac fibrosis in the myocardium, scattered loss of cardiomyocytes, and disordered arrangement of myocardial myotomes in the offspring. Furthermore, we observed a significant increase in mitochondrial Reactive Oxygen Species content, a decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential, ATP level, and mitochondrial DNA copy number, and sustained opening of mitochondrial permeability transition pores in the heart tissues of the offspring.

Conclusions: These results indicated that PAE had adverse effects on the cardiac structure and function of the newborn mice and could trigger oxidative stress in their myocardia and contribute to mitochondrial dysfunction.

alcohol; cardiac damage; mitochondrial dysfunction; prenatal ethanol exposure.