Spectrum Analysis of Heart Rate Fluctuations in Hatched and Unhatched Prenatal Chick Embryos

Abstract

Listen

Translate article

Instantaneous heart rate (IHR) was continuously measured in six hatched embryos and three unhatched embryos. Spectrum analysis of IHR was performed to determine indices of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system activity and a spectrum gradient α (1/f α ). Developmental patterns of HR and HR fluctuations (HRFs) in successfully hatched embryos were elucidated. Developmental patterns and/or HRFs of unhatched embryos were different compared with those of normally hatched embryos. Although baseline HR and cyclic mean HR changes in unhatched embryos were similar to those in normally hatched embryos, indices of the autonomic nervous system and the spectrum gradient were distinctly different. These results imply abnormal physiological development of embryos could be speculated using time-series and spectrum analyses. In addition, characteristic HR changes occurred before embryonic death. Such HRFs may be a distinctive phenomenon of hypoxia. However, whether distinctive HRFs exist in hypoxia should be assessed in further research.