Effects of thiamine deficiency on thiamine-dependent enzymes in regions of the brain of pregnant rats and their offspring.

Thiamine needs in pregnancy and lactation are known to be increased. Previous studies suggest that developing rat brain is more susceptible to a lack of thiamine intake than is adult brain. In order to study the basis of this susceptibility, activities of the three thiamine-dependent enzymes [pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDHC), alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase (alpha KGDH), and transketolase (TK)] were measured in homogenates of brain tissue from thiamine-deficient female rats and their offspring. The study revealed a more rapid progression of thiamine deficiency in pregnant thiamine-deficient rats compared to nonpregnant rats as seen by significantly increased "TPP effect" values. No differences in activities of the three thiamine-dependent enzymes in brain were observed between pregnant and nonpregnant animals. However, activities of all three thiamine-dependent enzymes were significantly reduced in cerebral cortex of the offspring of thiamine-deficient mothers 13 days postnatally. TK activities were also reduced in cerebellum and brain stem of these animals. Since thiamine-dependent enzymes are important for the establishment of adult patterns of cerebral energy metabolism and also in myelin synthesis, maternal thiamine deficiency resulting in reductions of activities of these enzymes at a vulnerable period in brain development could have serious metabolic consequences leading to permanent neurological sequellae in the offspring.