Repeated neonatal handling with maternal separation permanently alters hippocampal GABAA receptors and behavioral stress responses.

Increasing evidence suggests that postnatal events, such as handling or maternal separation, can produce long-term changes in brain function. These are often expressed as changes in the profile of endocrine or behavioral responses to stress. Changes in gamma-aminobutyric acid type A receptors (GABARs), which mediate the majority of fast synaptic inhibition in adult brain, have been proposed as one potential mediator of these behavioral effects. In the current article, we use a combination of single-cell electrophysiology and antisense mRNA amplification to demonstrate permanent molecular and functional differences in GABARs within hippocampal dentate granule neurons after as few as two episodes of neonatal handling with brief maternal separation. Adult animals that as pups experienced handling with maternal separation maintained a more immature GABAR phenotype and exhibited increased activity in response to swim stress. These findings demonstrate the exquisite sensitivity of the developing GABAergic system to even subtle environmental manipulations and provide an unique molecular mechanism by which postnatal handling with maternal separation may alter stress-related behavior.