Changes in the mRNA Expressions of Insulin-like Growth Factors, Their Receptors, and Binding Proteins during the Postnatal Development of Rat Masseter Muscle

Morphological, biochemical, and functional changes in rat masseter muscle reportedly occur during the shift of rat feeding behavior from suckling to chewing. To determine whether insulin-like growth factors (IGFs), their receptors (IGFRs), and binding proteins (IGFBPs) are involved in the changes in rat masseter muscle during the shift of rat feeding behavior, we analyzed the expressions of IGF-I, IGF-II, IGFR1, IGFR2, and IGFBP1∼6 mRNAs in rat masseter muscle between 0 and 70 days after birth using the competitive, reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method. Between 14 and 19 days of age, sharp falls in the quantities of IGF-I, IGF-II, IGFR1, IGFR2, IGFBP3, IGFBP5, and IGFBP6 mRNAs were observed, whereas the quantity of IGFBP4 mRNA rose sharply during the same period. IGFBP1 and 2 mRNAs were not detectable during the postnatal development. In the present study, the shift of rat feeding behavior from suckling to chewing occurred between 14 and 19 days of age, since the pups took residues of a pellet diet which had been dropped in a cage after 14 days of age, and we removed the pups from the dams and fed them on a pellet diet at 19 days of age. Thus, the drastic changes in the quantities of IGF, IGFR, and IGFBP mRNAs in the rat masseter muscle between 14 and 19 days of age seem to be involved in the shift of rat feeding behavior.