Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
MAEJO INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, cilt.20, sa.1, ss.1-15, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
This study aims to investigate the impact of follow-up frequency on prenatal processes and maternal behaviours in pregnant rats. A total of 16 primigravida Wistar albino rats were used in the study. The pregnant rats were randomly divided into 4 groups: control group (C), group followed up every 2 days (IG1), group followed up every 4 days (IG2) and group followed up every 6 days (IG3). The daily feed intake, water consumption, weight gain and fasting blood glucose levels of the rats in the groups were determined during the study period. In addition, the birth weight and daily weight gain of the pups were recorded. The open-field test was administered to the pregnant rats and social preference tests were conducted on the maternal rats at post-birth, with locomotor activities evaluated using Python programming. The weight, food and water intake in the IG3 group significantly increased while the IG2 group showed a decrease. The highest offspring weights were recorded in the IG2 group while the lowest were observed in the IG3 group. The longest time spent in the centre of the test maze was recorded in the IG2 group at 39.33±5.50 sec. while the shortest time was recorded in the control group at 21.66±2.88 sec. The follow-up procedure applied every 4 days to pregnant rats was found to decrease food and water intake and weight gain while leading to the highest weights of the offspring, indicating positive effects on behavioural parameters, particularly stress.