Expression and significance of Aβ40 in hippocampus of offspring with maternal lead exposure

Objective To explore the effects of maternal lead exposure on the expression of amyloid-peptide(beta) 40(Aβ₄₀) in hippocampus of offspring in mice.Methods Female mice were exposed to lead acetate in drinking water at dosages of 0 g/L,0.3 g/L,1.0 g/L and 3.0 g/L from the beginning of gestation to the postnatal days 21 (PND21).Twenty-one days after the birth,the lead contents in blood and hippocampus of the offspring were determined and the expression of Aβ 40 in hippocampus of all the offspring in various dosages groups were determined with western blot.Results The lead contents in blood and hippocampus of various lead exposed groups were significantly higher than that of the control group(P< 0.05).The results of western blot showed that the expression of Aβ₄₀ in hippocampus of moderate and high lead exposure group pups was higher than that of the control group(P< 0.05).The correlation analyses showed that the expression of Aβ₄₀ was positively related to lead content in blood and hippocampus (r=0.524,0.613,P< 0.05).Conclusion Maternal lead exposure may induce the accumulation of lead in the offspring and maternal lead exposure enhances the aggregation of Aβ₄₀ in hippocampus of the offpring mice.