Table 4.
Circulating concentrations of metabolites and progesterone at day 24 and day 140 of pregnancy in control (14 singleton pregnancies, 12 twin pregnancies, and 4 triplet pregnancies) and in feed-restricted ewes (11 singleton pregnancies, 15 twin pregnancies, and 3 triplet pregnancies). T = treatment; D = day; ALT = alanine aminotransferase; AST = aspartate aminotransferase; LDH = lactate dehydrogenase; NEFA = non-esterified fatty acids.
| Variables | Litter Size | Treatments (T) | Day of Pregnancy | p-Values | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Controls | Feed-Restr. | 24 | 140 | T | D | T × D | ||
| ALT (U/L) | Singletons | 25.9 ± 1.7 | 24.8 ± 2.0 | 26.2 ± 1.3 | 24.5 ± 1.6 | 0.696 | 0.175 | 0.526 |
| Twins | 22.1 ± 1.4 | 25.0 ± 1.3 | 24.9 ± 1.4 | 22.1 ± 0.9 | 0.137 | 0.071 | 0.795 | |
| Triplets | 20.6 ± 2.2 | 24.7 ± 2.2 | 25.6 ± 1.6 | 19.7 ± 1.7 | 0.246 | 0.002 | 0.810 | |
| Albumin (g/dL) | Singletons | 3.5 ± 0.1 | 3.4 ± 0.1 | 3.5 ± 0.1 | 3.4 ± 0.1 | 0.626 | 0.325 | 0.224 |
| Twins | 3.6 ± 0.1 | 3.5 ± 0.1 | 3.5 ± 0.1 | 3.5 ± 0.1 | 0.516 | 0.406 | 0.681 | |
| Triplets | 3.5 ± 0.1 | 3.4 ± 0.1 | 3.6 ± 0.1 | 3.3 ± 0.1 | 0.681 | 0.078 | 0.994 | |
| AST (U/L) | Singletons | 161.6 ± 19.0 | 141.5 ± 20.7 | 171.0 ± 21.9 | 132.1 ± 10.2 | 0.483 | 0.060 | 0.420 |
| Twins | 144.8 ± 15.3 | 138.9 ± 14.1 | 155.7 ± 11.2 | 128.0 ± 11.0 | 0.781 | 0.002 | 0.436 | |
| Triplets | 125.1 ± 15.4 | 108.3 ± 15.4 | 121.0 ± 7.0 | 112.5 ± 15.4 | 0.470 | 0.419 | 0.940 | |
| Glucose (mg/dL) | Singletons | 82.3 ± 2.6 | 76.8 ± 2.9 | 81.9 ± 2.2 | 77.3 ± 2.0 | 0.167 | 0.014 | 0.507 |
| Twins | 78.0 ± 1.9 | 76.7 ± 1.7 | 81.4 ± 1.0 | 73.3 ± 2.1 | 0.606 | 0.001 | 0.484 | |
| Triplets | 72.9 ± 4.4 | 66.9 ± 4.4 | 77.0 ± 3.4 | 62.8 ± 4.5 | 0.377 | 0.030 | 0.088 | |
| LDH (U/L) | Singletons | 556.0 ± 42.2 | 531.1 ± 49.9 | 577.0 ± 50.3 | 510.0 ± 26.2 | 0.707 | 0.163 | 0.234 |
| Twins | 707.2 ± 122.0 | 549.9 ± 109.1 | 746.6 ± 163.4 | 510.5 ± 26.5 | 0.346 | 0.170 | 0.390 | |
| Triplets | 535.5 ± 44.6 | 466.7 ± 44.6 | 490.7 ± 12.6 | 511.5 ± 52.9 | 0.317 | 0.653 | 0.360 | |
| Progesterone (ng/mL) | Singletons | 12.6 ± 1.4 | 9.3 ± 1.6 | 6.8 ± 0.8 | 15.1 ± 1.5 | 0.141 | 0.000 | 0.099 |
| Twins | 23.5 ± 2.3 | 15.6 ± 1.6 | 9.0 ± 1.3 | 30.1 ± 2.6 | 0.011 | 0.000 | 0.205 | |
| Triplets | 25.1 ± 8.5 | 35.2 ± 7.4 | 11.9 ± 0.9 | 48.5 ± 11.2 | 0.411 | 0.023 | 0.319 | |
| NEFA (mmol/L) | Singletons | 0.2 ± 0.0 | 0.2 ± 0.0 | 0.3 ± 0.0 | 0.1 ± 0.0 | 0.549 | 0.000 | 0.554 |
| Twins | 0.3 ± 0.0 | 0.3 ± 0.0 | 0.4 ± 0.1 | 0.3 ± 0.0 | 0.750 | 0.055 | 0.738 | |
| Triplets | 0.3 ± 0.1 | 0.2 ± 0.1 | 0.3 ± 0.0 | 0.2 ± 0.1 | 0.180 | 0.332 | 0.619 | |
| Urea (mg/dL) | Singletons | 29.7 ± 1.5 | 31.4 ± 1.7 | 31.7 ± 1.6 | 29.5 ± 1.0 | 0.445 | 0.154 | 0.622 |
| Twins | 26.7 ± 1.3 | 29.3 ± 1.2 | 29.3 ± 1.2 | 26.7 ± 1.0 | 0.166 | 0.057 | 0.161 | |
| Triplets | 25.9 ± 2.2 | 29.1 ± 2.2 | 29.2 ± 2.6 | 25.7 ± 1.7 | 0.333 | 0.307 | 0.139 | |