Centro de Investigación en Reproducción Animal, Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala-CINVESTAV, Mexico.
Neurosci Lett. 2010 Nov 5;484(3):197-200. doi: 10.1016/j.neulet.2010.08.052. Epub 2010 Aug 21.
Several changes in brain function, including learning and memory, have been reported during pregnancy but the molecular mechanisms involved in these changes are unknown. Due to the fundamental role of glial cells in brain activity, we analyzed the content of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in the hippocampus, frontal cortex, preoptic area, hypothalamus and cerebellum of the rat on days 2, 14, 18, and 21 of pregnancy and on day 2 of lactation by Western blot. A differential expression pattern of GFAP was found in the brain during pregnancy and the beginning of lactation. GFAP content was increased in the hippocampus throughout pregnancy, whereas a decrease was observed in cerebellum. GFAP content was increased in the frontal cortex and hypothalamus on days 14 and 18, respectively, with a decrease in the following days of pregnancy in both regions. In preoptic area a decrease in GFAP content was observed on day 14 with an increase on days 18 and 21. In the frontal cortex and cerebellum, GFAP content was increased on day 2 of lactation, while it was maintained as on day 21 of pregnancy in the other regions. Our data suggest a differential expression pattern of GFAP in the rat brain during pregnancy and the beginning of lactation that should be associated with changes in brain function during these reproductive stages.
在怀孕期间，大脑功能发生了多种变化，包括学习和记忆，但涉及这些变化的分子机制尚不清楚。由于神经胶质细胞在大脑活动中的基础作用，我们通过 Western blot 分析了妊娠第 2、14、18 和 21 天以及哺乳期第 2 天大鼠海马体、额叶皮质、视前区、下丘脑和小脑的神经胶质纤维酸性蛋白（GFAP）含量。发现 GFAP 在妊娠和哺乳期开始时在大脑中有差异表达模式。在整个妊娠期间，海马体中的 GFAP 含量增加，而小脑中的 GFAP 含量减少。在额叶皮质和下丘脑，GFAP 含量分别在第 14 天和第 18 天增加，随后在妊娠的后续几天减少。在视前区，GFAP 含量在第 14 天减少，第 18 天和第 21 天增加。在额叶皮质和小脑中，GFAP 含量在哺乳期第 2 天增加，而在其他区域则保持与妊娠第 21 天相同。我们的数据表明，在妊娠和哺乳期开始时，大鼠大脑中的 GFAP 表达模式存在差异，这可能与这些生殖阶段大脑功能的变化有关。
