Exposure of pregnant sows to deoxynivalenol during 35-70 days of gestation does not affect pathomorphological and immunohistochemical properties of fetal organs

In order to evaluate the influence of deoxynivalenol (DON) on histomorphological and immunohistochemical parameters in the development of porcine fetuses, five pregnant sows were fed a control diet (0.15 mg DON/kg diet) and seven sows a contaminated diet (4.42 mg DON/kg diet) between days 35 and 70 of gestation. On day 70, fetuses were delivered by caesarean section and sows and fetuses were euthanized. Tissue samples of three fetuses from each sow were collected, fixed in formalin, and processed routinely for light microscopy and immunohistochemistry. At necropsy, no macroscopic lesions were observed in any organ of the fetuses. Histomorphological, immunohistochemical, and morphometrical parameters of the immune system, liver, and intestinal tract were examined. The following antibodies were used in the liver, spleen, lymph nodes, thymus, gut, and bone marrow to compare control- and DON-treated animals: (I) CD3 and CD79a (T and B lymphocytes differentiation); (II) myeloid/histiocyte antigen 387 (MAC) (identification of macrophages); (III) Ki-67 Antigen (Ki-67) (proliferation marker); (IV) p-p-38 mitogen-activated protein kinases (p-p38 MAPK) as well as caspase-3 (cas3) and caspase-9 (cas9) (enzymes of apoptosis cascade); (V) tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) (immune-related protein). The results of the study show that exposure of pregnant sows with DON between gestation days 35 and 70 causes no pathomorphologically or immunohistochemically detectable alterations in all fetal organs examined.