Malnutrition during lactation programs the hypothalamic gene networks controlling reproductive function through generations

The timing of pubertal initiation and progression in mammals is likely influenced by the nutritional and metabolic state, leading us to the hypothesis that transient malnutrition experienced at critical times during development may contribute to alterations in the rate of pubertal progression through generations. Accordingly, using a mouse model of lactation under-nutrition during suckling, we predicted that body composition, reproductive performance parameters and expression of genes responsible for hypothalamic neural circuits controlling among others reproductive function will be changed in F1 and F2 offspring. Microarray analysis of gene expression was performed on hypothalamic tissue dissected from 21-day-old female mice raised from birth to weaning in the control or lactation under-nutrition condition.