Abstract: Objective: To analyze the changes of pregnant mice plasma during the embryonic palate development using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) technology and the principal component analysis (PCA) method through the establishment of retinoic acid induced cleft palate in C57BL/6J mice model. Methods: Pregnant mice were randomly divided into experimental group (retinoic acid) and control group (vegetable oil), during specific pregnancy with lavage of retinoic acid and vegetable oils. After pregnant mice were sacrificed, plasma samples were collected in specific pregnancy and the incidence of mice cleft palate was assessed. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer was used to determine the nuclear magnetic resonance hydrogen spectrum diagram combined with PCA, and then the track chart of plasma metabolites changes was plotted in depict retinoic acid induced C57BL/6J pregnant mice. Results: PCA analysis showed that the track chart of plasma metabolites changes between two groups was different. Conclusion: Retinoic acid can delay the metabolism of pregnant mice plasma during embryonic development, illustrating the correlation between maternal environmental changes and embryonic development.

Key words: Retinoic acid , Cleft palate , Nuclear magnetic resonance hydrogen spectrum, Principal component analysis , Metabonomics