Moderate copper deprivation during gestation and lactation affects dentate gyrus and hippocampal maturation in immature male rats. Hunt, CD and Idso, JP Moderate copper deprivation during gestation and lactation affects dentate gyrus and hippocampal maturation in immature male rats. Some parts of the brain are not fully developed for optimal function until after birth. Because brain development can be influenced by the nutrient intake of the mother during pregnancy, it is important to determine which parts of the brain are especially vulnerable to inadequate nutrition during the rapid stage of growth during gestation and nursing.
Copper is one of the minerals required for proper development and growth of the body.
Female rats were fed one of several test diets that contained different amounts of copper during the pregnancy and nursing of their young. When the pups completed the nursing period, selected brain structures were isolated and measured under a microscope. Inadequate amounts of copper in the diets of the mothers adversely affected the development brain structures that are involved with learning and memory. The inadequate copper nutrition of the mothers slowed down development of those structures in their offspring. Because learning and memory are vital functions of the brain and because dietary copper influences the development of some critical structures of the brain, further research is needed to determine whether the developing brain can recover from inadequate copper nutrition of the mother during late pregnancy and nursing.