Efeito da suplementação do óleo de milho durante a gestação e lactação sobre a memória da prole de ratas Wistar.

Abstract

For the development of brain structures and functions, care and attention to the quality of food is essential, and nutrients have a relevant impact on this development, since pregnancy and lactation are susceptible periods for neuroplasticity and neurogenesis. Food sources of lipids, especially polyunsaturated fatty acids, help in the development of the cognitive system. Nutritional deficiency of omega-3 (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids is a causative factor in neurodevelopmental disorders. Thus, the objective of this study was to analyze the effect of corn oil consumption on memory in the offspring of rats supplemented during gestation and lactation. Wistar rats were used to obtain the offspring, and two groups (n=8) were formed: Control that received soybean oil (OS) and the experimental group that received corn oil (OM). All treatments were administered by gavage to the mother rats during gestation and lactation. The animals were kept under standard conditions, with controlled humidity, temperature, and light-dark cycle, receiving water and feed ad libitum. After 42 days of life, the offspring were submitted to three memory tests: open field habituation test, object recognition test, and Morris water maze test. In the habituation test in the open field, we noticed an improvement in the memory of the offspring of rats that received corn oil, where the animals in the second exposure decreased their ambulation, meaning that the decrease of exploration reflects in this habituation. When the object recognition test was analyzed, the animals explored more the new object, and it can be concluded that the familiar object was already memorized by the animals. In the Morris water maze test, memory facilitation was also observed, where the animals in the latency time, number of entries in the platform zone, and time in the platform zone. Given the results obtained, it can be concluded that the ingestion of corn oil without exposure to forms of heat and warming promoted memory facilitation in the offspring of Wistar rats, showing significant results.