Effects of iodine deficiency during pregnancy on fetal iodine metabolism and thyroid function

Abstract

Objective To study the effects of iodine deficiency during pregnancy on fetal iodine metabolism and thyroid function. Methods Wistar dams were randomly divided into four groups: severe iodine deficiency(SID), moderate iodine deficiency(MoID), mild iodine deficiency(MiID) and normal iodine(NI). All the dams were fed with iodine deficient food(iodine contents: 50 μg/kg) and drinking water with different doses of KI (0,54.9,163.8,381.7 μg/L) for 3 months till mating. Iodine was supplied at the dose of 1.24 μg/d(SID), 2.50 μg/d(MoID), 5.00 μg/d(MiID) and 10.00 μg/d(NI), respectively. The dams and their fetuses on gestation of 20 days were studied. Urine iodine of dams and iodine contents in fetal amniotic fluid were measured by As3+-Ce4+catalytic spectrophotometry using ammonium persulfate digestion. And blood iodine in pregnant rats and iodine contents in placental tissue were measured by As3+-Ce4+catalytic spectrophotometry in dry ash of samples in KClO3-ZnSO4-K2CO3-NaCl. Thyroid hormone levels in mother serum and in fetal amniotic fluid were detected by chemiluminascent assay, and their thyroid glands were weighted and carefully observed. Results ①Iodine content in urine and blood of pregnant rats and amniotic fluid of fetal rats reduced along with their decrease of iodine supply. Urine iodine median of rats in 4 groups(NI: 353.7 μg/L; MiID: 115.9 μg/L; MoID: 26.9 μg/L; SID: 0 μg/L) were statistically significant(χ2=32.884, P 0.05). ②In SID, TT4[(14.3±4.1)nmol/L]and FT4[(10.8±3.6)pmol/L]were lower than that in NI[(28.4±19.3)nmol/L, (20.2±8.0)pmol/L, P 0.05). And FT3/FT4 ratio(0.34±0.16), absolute[(48.4±22.7)mg]and relative weights[(144± 76)mg/kg]of thyroid gland in pregnant rats were respectively higher than that in NI[0.16±0.02, (19.5±3.1)mg, (66±10)mg/kg, P 0.05). A visibly congestive enlargement thyroid was found in SID, while thyroid mildly enlarged in MoID and MiID. ③Compared with NI [(2.38±1.55)pmol/L,0.50±0.18], the FT4 levels [(1.07±0.87) pmol/L]in amniotic fluid were significantly decreased (P 0.05) in other 3 groups[MiID: (2.77±0.90)pmol/L,0.46±0.15; MoID: (2.35±0.76)pmoL/L,0.61±0.21]. A visible thyroid enlargement with hyperemia was observed in SID fetus while in other 2 experiment groups their thyroids were only mildly congested. Conclusions Severe iodine deficiency during pregnancy can result in both mother and fetus overt hypothyroidism. The fetal thyroid hormone levels in mild iodine deficiency status is close to normal levels because of maternal and placental compensation. Moreover, both the dam and the fetus suffer from the negative effects in moderate iodine deficiency during pregnancy. Key words: Pregnancy; Iodine; Deficiency diseases; Goiter