Peat smoke exposure as a risk factor for deterioration of postnatal development

Introduction. In connection with the growing number and scale of wildfires, the problem of the toxic effect of biomass combustion products is relevant both in Russia and abroad. Data on the consequences of wildfire smoke exposure at various stages of ontogenesis are extremely scarce. The presence in smoke substances that, in addition to general toxic effects, have reprotoxic, gonadotoxic, and genotoxic effects, determines the need to study its effect on the reproductive potential and health of offspring. The purpose of the study was to assess the postnatal development of the offspring, the parent generation of which was exposed to peat smoke during puberty. Materials and methods. Exposure to peat smoke was carried out once for four hours on the 35th day of life for female and on the 45th day for male rats. The average concentrations of carbon monoxide in the exposure chambers were 29.3±11.1 mg/m3, and ultrafine PM2.5 particles – 0.39±0.61 mg/m3. At puberty, peat smoke exposed rats were mated with intact partners. In rat pups from the offspring there was studied the trend in body weight gain, physical development, and sensory-motor reflexes were assessed. Results. Acute exposure to peat smoke during puberty in white rats adversely affects the development of their offspring. A significant lag in the physical and sensory-motor development of rat pups from the offspring of animals exposed to smoke was revealed in comparison with rat pups from the control group. Limitations. The study was limited to the study of postnatal development of offspring obtained from rats exposed to peat smoke during puberty. Conclusion. Exposure to peat smoke during puberty leads to a delay in the physical and somatosensory development of the offspring during early postnatal ontogenesis.