Fructose, a simple carbohydrate, is contained in fruits and honey. It is widely used as a commercial sweetener for beverages and foods and the average fructose intake in the United States was reported to be 49 g/day from 1999 to 2004. It has been reported that excessive intake of fructose induces developmental disorders of the offspring in rats, particularly abnormal glucose and lipid metabolism and neurodevelopment. However, it has not been reported whether excessive intake of fructose induces congenital morphological abnormalities in fetuses. Therefore, we investigated whether an excessive intake of fructose during pregnancy induces congenital morphological abnormalities in the fetus in rats. Pregnant rats were fed a diet containing 13 g, 26 g, 39 g and 65 g fructose / 66 g carbohydrate in 100 g diet, respectively, for the 13% to 65% Fru diet groups (equivalent to about 500, 1000, 1500 and 2500 g/man/day in humans) or control diet from the day after mating until the end of gestation. Caesarean section was performed on gestation day 20, and the fetuses were examined for caesarean section parameters (fetal viability, fetal body weight, placental weight) and fetal external, skeletal and visceral abnormalities. There were no changes/findings in the caesarean section parameters or fetal morphology in any of the fructose diet groups. In conclusion, excessive intake of fructose during gestation did not induce congenital morphological abnormalities in rat fetuses and did not affect fetal viability or development.

Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) is an aquatic vegetable cultivated in Asia. Lotus rhizome rot is a sever disease that reduces productivity. We extracted and analyzed the compounds contained in the seed rhizomes of ‘Bicchu’ and ‘Lotus,’ cultivars that differ in resistance to rhizome rot. Interestingly, triglycerides were identified only in ‘Lotus,’ which exhibits a stronger disease resistance than ‘Bicchu.’ However, trilinolein, one of the major triglycerides in rhizomes, did not inhibit the growth of Fusarium commune isolated from rhizomes. Therefore, the differences in the rhizome lipid contents were unrelated to their resistance to rhizome rot. Although in this study we analyzed the major compounds in uninfected rhizomes, certain minor anti-fungal phytochemicals in disease-resistant rhizomes might be induced post-infection with pathogenic fungi. This cultivar comparison approach would be useful for further comprehensive studies on these phytochemicals.