PGE₂ Prevents Anomalies Induced by Hyperglycemia or Diabetic Serum in Mouse Embryos

Both a high level of D-glucose in the medium and serum from a diabetic rat can induce neural-tube fusion defects and growth retardation in cultured mouse and rat embryos. To test our hypothesis that a deficiency of PGs may be involved in the mechanism of hyperglycemia- and diabetic serum-induced teratogenesis and growth retardation, we added PGE₂ to the medium of a whole mouse embryo culture containing either normal rat serum and 52.7 mM D-glucose (hyperglycemic) or diabetic rat serum and 22.2 mM D-glucose (diabetic). After a 24-h culture, 94% of hyperglycemic embryos and 81% of diabetic embryos had neural-tube fusion defects; in addition, the number of somites, the morphological score, and the protein content of the embryos were significantly lower than those of controls. Supplementing the medium with PGE₂ at concentrations of 0.028–28.4 nM (hyperglycemic) or 28.4 nM (diabetic) significantly reduced the incidence of neural-tube defects and increased the number of somites, the morphological score, and the protein content. These results strongly support the hypothesis that the teratogenicity of diabetic serum, as well as the teratogenic action of hyperglycemic culture, are mediated through a deficiency of PGs.