No juvenile arterial hypertension in sheep multiples despite reduced nephron numbers

Low birth weight is associated with an increased risk of metabolic dysfunction and arterial hypertension in later life. Because of their reduced birth weight twins have been used repeatedly as a natural model to investigate prenatal programming of hypertension. To reveal an early impact of lower nephron endowment on blood pressure, we performed a longitudinal study on lambs from single, twin and triplet pregnancies. The lambs were studied from birth until adulthood, including regular blood analyses, measurements of body weight and blood pressure and post-mortem estimation of glomerular numbers. Relative weight differences between multiples and singletons at birth were −28% for twins and −44% for triplets, respectively. Some lambs showed rapid catch-up growth. Total nephron number of twins and triplets was reduced by 21 and 37% with respect to that of singletons (p < 0.01). However, multiples did not show increased blood pressure within the time frame of this study. No gender-specific effect was observed. Plasma concentrations of creatinine, urea, electrolytes or osmolality also did not differ. Our data indicate that the previously reported postnatal blood pressure differences between sheep multiples and singletons are a time-limited phenomenon. During infancy and adolescence, a reduced nephron number in sheep multiples is neither associated with increased blood pressure nor reflected by plasma parameters.