145. A neonatal piglet model for investigating brain and cognitive development in small for gestational age human infants

The piglet was investigated as a model for studying brain and cognitive deficits associated with being born small for gestational age (SGA). Naturally farrowed SGA (0.7–1.0 kg BW) and average for gestational age (AGA, 1.3–1.6 kg BW) piglets were obtained on postnatal day (PD) 2, placed in individual cages, and provided a nutritionally adequate milk replacer (285 ml/kg/d). At PD14, performance in a spatial T-maze was assessed. At PD28, piglets underwent magnetic resonance (MR) imaging to assess brain structure (voxel-based morphometry), connectivity (diffusion-tensor imaging) and metabolites in the hippocampus and corpus callosum (proton MR spectroscopy).Within the maze, SGA took longer to reach criterion than AGA ( p p p p p p p Supported by the University of Illinois CNLM and HD069899.