THE EFFECTS OF PRENATAL STRESS ON STRUCTURAL-FUNCTIONAL CONDITION OF FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM IN ADULT OFFSPRING

Abstract

The prenatal period of human development is the most vulnerable. Events in the life of a pregnant woman, in particular socio-emotional stress, make influence on the intrauterine fetus development but also on the health of the child and his susceptibility to certain diseases in adult. To date, it has been proven that the reproductive system, starting from the embryonic period to the end of the descending ontogenesis, is particularly sensitive to the effects of socio-emotional stress. The aim of study is to define effects of social-emotional maternal stress during prenatal period on morpho-functional condition of the ovaries in the adult offspring. Materials and methods. 10-month-old female Wistar rats from the first-generation descendants of control females and socio-emotional stressed during the pregnancy mothers were investigated in the experiment. Histological changes in ovaries as well as hormonal status of female offspring from gestational stressed mothers were studied. According to the results of our study, significant degenerative changes were found in ovaries of adult female offspring from gestationally stressed mothers, which manifest in disturbances of oogenesis and ovulation with an increase of estradiol level in the blood and body weight compared to the control which, probably, can be explained by extraovarian conversion androgens into estrogens. Conclusion. Mothers stress during all gestational period makes negative influence on reproductive possibilities of their adult female offspring.