The effects of the soy-isoflavone, genistein, on the osteogenesis of rat dams and their offspring were evaluated. Maternal rats were fed on a diet containing purified genistein at the level of 0.5g/kg of diet or on a control diet without genistein from various stages during pregnancy to postnatal day 12. The dry weight, length, ash weight, mineral content, calcium content, and bone mineral density of the femurs from the dams and infants were measured. Genistein slightly affected the bone of infants immediately after the birth, but the effect was temporary on infant osteogenesis.
There was no consistent effect on the infants after successive genistein exposure through their mothers during the fetal and suckling stages, and there was no difference in effect according to the period of exposure during pregnancy and lactation. The femurs of the dams ingesting genistein during the pregnancy period showed a significantly higher calcium content, but there was no significant effect on the dry weight, ash weight, mineral content or bone mineral density.
The results of this study suggest that maternal feeding of genistein had no marked effect on osteogenesis in the dams, suckling pups and offspring during growth.
