THE TERATOGENIC EFFECT OF METFORMIN ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHICK EMBRYO

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is a common complication of pregnancy, which affects mother and fetus, and lead to serious complications. Metformin is primarily used for type 2 diabetes and has been used in a woman with gestational diabetes. There is still no information to confirm the embryotoxic or teratogenic of this drug. This study aimed to evaluate the teratogenic effect of metformin on the development of chick embryos by comparing between experimental groups and control group. The fertilized eggs were divided into two main groups; group A was the control group (normal saline injected) and group B was the experimental group (metformin injected). The experimental group was subdivided into four subgroups with different concentration of metformin injection. Eggs from group A and group B were injected at 21-hour incubation and were opened on day 3 of incubation. The experimental group with the highest concentration of metformin showed the delay in neural tube closure and growth retardation of several organs. The mortality rate was correlated with the increase in the concentration of metformin. Metformin with high concentration affected to morphology and growth rate in developing chick embryos.