<p class="title rtejustify">Lack of protein in a father's diet affects sperm quality which can have a direct impact on the long-term health of their offspring, a study has found.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">Researchers at the University of Nottingham in the UK fed male mice a poor quality diet which resulted in their offspring becoming over-weight, with symptoms of type 2 diabetes and reduced expression of genes which regulate the metabolism of fat.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">The study, published in the journal PNAS, shows that both sperm and the fluid they are carried in (seminal plasma) from male mice fed a low protein diet could affect the long-term metabolic health of their offspring.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">There has been much research showing that sperm from men who are overweight, smoke, drink excessively or who have type 2 diabetes are often of poorer quality than sperm from healthy, fertile men.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">"It is well understood that what a mother eats during pregnancy can affect the development and health of her child," said Adam Watkins, an assistant professor at the University of Nottingham.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">"Our research using mice shows that at the time of conception, the diet and well-being of the father influences the long-term growth and metabolic health of his offspring," said Watkins.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">The study found that males fed a low-protein diet produced sperm with fewer chemical tags on their DNA that regulate gene expression than mice fed a normal diet.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">Researchers also observed that the seminal plasma suppressed maternal uterine inflammatory and immunological responses, essential for a healthy pregnancy.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">They believe that the health of a father's offspring is affected both by the quality of a father's genetic information passed on within the sperm at conception and by the seminal plasma-primed maternal uterine environment in which the embryo will develop. </p>
<p class="title rtejustify">Lack of protein in a father's diet affects sperm quality which can have a direct impact on the long-term health of their offspring, a study has found.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">Researchers at the University of Nottingham in the UK fed male mice a poor quality diet which resulted in their offspring becoming over-weight, with symptoms of type 2 diabetes and reduced expression of genes which regulate the metabolism of fat.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">The study, published in the journal PNAS, shows that both sperm and the fluid they are carried in (seminal plasma) from male mice fed a low protein diet could affect the long-term metabolic health of their offspring.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">There has been much research showing that sperm from men who are overweight, smoke, drink excessively or who have type 2 diabetes are often of poorer quality than sperm from healthy, fertile men.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">"It is well understood that what a mother eats during pregnancy can affect the development and health of her child," said Adam Watkins, an assistant professor at the University of Nottingham.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">"Our research using mice shows that at the time of conception, the diet and well-being of the father influences the long-term growth and metabolic health of his offspring," said Watkins.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">The study found that males fed a low-protein diet produced sperm with fewer chemical tags on their DNA that regulate gene expression than mice fed a normal diet.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">Researchers also observed that the seminal plasma suppressed maternal uterine inflammatory and immunological responses, essential for a healthy pregnancy.</p>.<p class="bodytext rtejustify">They believe that the health of a father's offspring is affected both by the quality of a father's genetic information passed on within the sperm at conception and by the seminal plasma-primed maternal uterine environment in which the embryo will develop. </p>