Changes in the metabolic profile of urine from mink during early pregnancy
During pregnancy dynamic metabolic adaptation of the female is necessary to ensure availability of substrates for foetal development. The aim of the present study was to examine the metabolic adaptations during pregnancy in female mink by metabolic profiling of urine.
A total of 97 urine samples were collected from 58 mink on three occasions following mating. The samples were subjected to non-targeted LC-MS based metabolomics. The samples separated clearly according to sampling date and identification of metabolites causing the separation showed that the excretion of dicarboxylic acids (n = 5, 6, 7 or 8) exhibited a decrease during early pregnancy and that the excretion of several acylcarnitines followed the same pattern. In contrast, excretion of metabolites of protein metabolism (e.g. cinnamoylglycine, hippuric acid, and creatine) was increased from the first to the second sampling where after it decreased again. Furthermore, putative identification of several dipeptides suggested that this is a significant class of metabolites in urine of pregnant mink. In conclusion, the present study showed that β-oxidation as well as protein metabolism is changed during pregnancy in mink and it is hypothesized that the changes occur to ensure optimal nutrition of the foetuses.
A total of 97 urine samples were collected from 58 mink on three occasions following mating. The samples were subjected to non-targeted LC-MS based metabolomics. The samples separated clearly according to sampling date and identification of metabolites causing the separation showed that the excretion of dicarboxylic acids (n = 5, 6, 7 or 8) exhibited a decrease during early pregnancy and that the excretion of several acylcarnitines followed the same pattern. In contrast, excretion of metabolites of protein metabolism (e.g. cinnamoylglycine, hippuric acid, and creatine) was increased from the first to the second sampling where after it decreased again. Furthermore, putative identification of several dipeptides suggested that this is a significant class of metabolites in urine of pregnant mink. In conclusion, the present study showed that β-oxidation as well as protein metabolism is changed during pregnancy in mink and it is hypothesized that the changes occur to ensure optimal nutrition of the foetuses.
