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Cellular Growth in Iron-Deficient Rats: Effect of Pre- and Postweaning Iron Repletion¹

Division of Nutritional Sciences and Department of Foods and Nutrition, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801

Effects of iron deficiency and repletion pre- and postweaning on cell growth in young rats were studied. Pregnant dams were fed 6 or 250 ppm iron. On d 2 of lactation, half of the dams in each group were fed the opposite diet. On d 17, cell growth in the crossed-over groups was similar to controls showing that cellular development is impaired only when the iron deficiency is present during gestation and laction. In a second experiment pup littermates of dams fed 6 (D), 12 (M) and 250 (C) ppm iron were weaned to either the same diet as fed to their dams DD, MM or CC; repleted with iron DC, MC; or fed the deficient diet CD until 42 d of age. After dietary iron repletion, cell numbers in thymus (DC and MC) and liver (DC) were greater than those of deficient littermates, but were less than those of controls (CC). Iron repletion postweaning reduced the cardiac hypertrophy (DC vs. DD and MC vs. MM) and increased splenic cell number compared to unrepleted deficient littermates (DC vs. DD). Thus, the severity and reversibility of impaired cellular growth is dependent on the timing and severity of the deficiency and the organ affected.

KEY WORDS: • iron deficiency • cell growth • DNA • protein

¹ Supported in part by National Institutes of Health Grant PHS5R22 HD15515-04.

² Present address: Department of Physiology and Biochemistry, Medical College of Pennsylvania, 3300 Henry Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19129.

³ Address reprint requests to: A. R. Sherman, 247 Bevier Hall, University of Illinois, 905 South Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL 61801.

Manuscript received 8 June 1984.