Female mice were introduced to the dirty cages previously occupied by the males (two females per male cage) for three days before being removed and introduced to the new, clean cages occupied by the males (two females per male). Males (8–10 weeks old) were housed individually for seven days before being removed to new, clean cages. Timed mating periods were conducted by firstly synchronising the induction of oestrous cycles at week five of the protocol. Six to eight-week-old female, wild-type BALB/c mice, received either a LID (~2.5 mg Fe/kg, SF01-017 diet based on AIN-93G, <5 mg Iron/Kg, Specialty Feeds, Glen Forrest, Australia) to induce systemic iron deficiency or a control chow diet (CC, SF09-091, 75 mg Iron/Kg, Specialty Feeds, Glen Forrest, Australia) commencing 5 weeks ( Figure 1A) prior to mating. ![]() They also highlight the utility of experimental models for understanding how iron status in pregnancy affects disease outcomes in offspring and provide a means for testing the efficacy of different iron supplements for preventing disease. ![]() These findings suggest that correcting iron deficiency in pregnancy using iron supplements may play an important role in preventing or reducing the severity of respiratory disease in offspring. Together, our data demonstrate that lower dietary iron and systemic deficiency during pregnancy can lead to physiological, immunological and anatomical changes in the lungs and airways of offspring that predispose to greater susceptibility to respiratory disease. Importantly, a low iron diet increases neutrophilic inflammation, which is indicative of more severe disease, in asthma. A low iron diet during pregnancy further increases these major disease features in offspring with experimental asthma. ![]() A low iron diet during pregnancy impairs lung function, increases airway inflammation, and alters lung structure in the absence and presence of experimental asthma. We used murine models to examine the effects of lower iron status during pregnancy on lung function, inflammation and structure, as well as its contribution to increased severity of asthma in the offspring. Maternal iron deficiency occurs in 40–50% of all pregnancies and is associated with an increased risk of respiratory disease and asthma in children.
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