Na ve pregnant female sprague dawley rats

Naïve pregnant female Sprague-Dawley rats (gestational days 6 upon arrival to the animal facility) were purchased from Charles River Inc. All rats were housed individually in 48.3 cm × 26.7 cm × 20.3 cm transparent polycarbonate cages under 12-h light/dark conditions (lights on at 6:30 am), and had access to standard laboratory rat chow and tap water ad libitum. The colony was maintained with a controlled temperature (21 ± 1 °C) and a relative humidity of 45–60%. Experiments were conducted during the light cycle. All animal manipulations were reviewed and approved by the University of Nebraska Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, and were carried out in compliance with the National Institutes of Health Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.

Naïve pregnant female Sprague-Dawley rats (gestational days 6 upon arrival to the animal facility) were purchased from Charles River Inc. All rats were housed individually in 48.3 cm × 26.7 cm × 20.3 cm transparent polycarbonate cages under 12-h light/dark conditions (lights on at 6:30 am), and had access to standard laboratory rat chow and tap water ad libitum. The colony was maintained with a controlled temperature (21 ± 1 °C) and a relative humidity of 45–60%. Experiments were conducted during the light cycle. All animal manipulations were reviewed and approved by the University of Nebraska Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, and were carried out in compliance with the National Institutes of Health Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.