Morphological and chemical changes in the medulla of the adrenal glands of progeny from parents who smoked pre-conception: an experimental study in rats

Abstract

This study was designed to investigate the morphological and functional status of the substance medullaris (MS) of adrenal glands (AG) in progeny of parents who smoked, in varying combinations and amounts, prior to conception. Rats were divided into groups in which either both parents or the mother only or the father only was exposed to cigarette smoke before and during pregnancy together with control groups who were not exposed to smoke at any time. The smoke exposure was calculated to be that experienced by smokers of so called “light” cigarettes. The progeny of these groups were raised to early adulthood and then the experiment was terminated. The adrenal glands of the progeny were examined for functional and morphological status. There were significant differences between the control group and all other groups–most noticeably the group in which mothers were exposed to smoke before and during pregnancy. Surprisingly there were also differences between controls and the groups where the father only had been exposed to cigarette smoke before pregnancy. This raises a whole new set of questions regarding the effect of smoke on genetic material passed form father to fetus and shows that smoking of even so called “light” cigarettes can cause visible morphological changes in progeny from matings where either or both parents have been exposed to this smoke.