mortality/aging
• mice are born at the expected Mendelian ratios but fail to survive beyond 24 hours after birth
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respiratory system
• EM of neonatal lungs revealed a reduction in the size and number of lamellar bodies
• however, newborns show no apparent defects in lung morphogenesis, type I pneumocyte differentiation, or maturation of surfactant protein-B (SPB)
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• although mice initiate respiratory effort at birth, they exhibit signs of respiratory distress, such as cyanosis and gasping
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• H&E staining revealed that airspaces appear shrunken and septal walls are folded at 1 hour after birth
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homeostasis/metabolism