Table 1. Cardiac mRNA levels of genes involved in heart growth and apoptosis at E14.5 and E17.5 in male fetuses prenatally exposed to saline (SAL) or dexamethasone (DEX).
| E14.5 | E17.5 | |||
| RAS genes | SAL | DEX | SAL | DEX |
| AT1aR | 1.07±0.17 | 1.10±0.22 | 1.05±0.14 | 2.64±0.38* |
| AT1bR | 1.16±0.27 | 0.88±0.17 | 1.16±0.36 | 0.88±0.32 |
| Cardiac growth factor genes | ||||
| IGF-2 | 1.04±0.12 | 1.04±0.26 | 1.44±0.46 | 1.13±0.48 |
| FGF-2 | 1.13±0.20 | 0.74±0.09 | 1.08±0.16 | 0.92±0.11 |
| VEGFa | 1.04±0.11 | 1.23±0.18 | 1.01±0.09 | 0.85±0.12 |
| Apoptotic genes | ||||
| Bax | 1.01±0.04 | 0.96±0.10 | 0.96±0.04 | 1.93±0.20* |
| Bcl-2 | 1.06±0.13 | 1.28±0.12 | 1.21±0.29 | 1.01±0.58 |
| Contractile function genes | ||||
| MHC-α | 0.98±0.30 | 0.47±0.16 | 1.14±0.39 | 1.27±0.32 |
| SERCA2 | 1.18±0.38 | 0.73±0.16 | 1.08±0.19 | 1.46±0.24 |
| Ryr2 | 0.95±0.30 | 0.66±0.27 | 1.25±0.45 | 1.56±0.32 |
| Glucocorticoid regulated genes | ||||
| GR | 1.08±0.16 | 2.42±0.79 | 1.02±0.10 | 3.04±0.47* |
| SGK1 | 1.19±0.57 | 2.67±0.85 | 1.11±0.42 | 1.97±0.40 |
Values are presented relative to SAL at for each age using comparative cycle threshold (CT) method. Data presented as the mean ± SEM. N = 5–9 litters (one animal per litter) per group at each age.* P<0.05 unpaired Student's t-test SAL vs. DEX.