Varlinskaya Elena I, Mooney Sandra M
Department of Psychology, Center for Development and Behavioral Neuroscience, Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY 13902, United States; Developmental Exposure Alcohol Research Center, Baltimore, MD 21201; Binghamton, NY 13902; Cortland, NY 13054; Syracuse, NY 13210, United States.
Developmental Exposure Alcohol Research Center, Baltimore, MD 21201; Binghamton, NY 13902; Cortland, NY 13054; Syracuse, NY 13210, United States; Department of Pediatrics, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201, United States; Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, United States(1).
Behav Brain Res. 2014 Mar 15;261:106-9. doi: 10.1016/j.bbr.2013.12.016. Epub 2013 Dec 16.
Alterations in social behavior are a hallmark of many neurodevelopmental disorders in humans. In rodents, social behavior is affected by prenatal insults. The outcomes are dependent on the timing of the insult as well as the sex and age of the animal tested. The limbic system is particularly important for social behavior, and a peak of neurogenesis within this system occurs on gestational day (G)15. Neurons appear particularly vulnerable to ethanol insult around the time they become post-mitotic. We tested the hypothesis that acute exposure to ethanol on G15 would result in significant social behavior deficits. Accordingly, Long Evans pregnant females were injected with ethanol (2.9 g/kg) or an equivalent volume of saline on G15. Offspring were assessed in a modified social interaction test on postnatal day (P) 28, P42, or P75, i.e., during early adolescence, late adolescence, or young adulthood. Prenatal ethanol exposure decreased social investigation in P28 females and transformed social preference into social avoidance in 75-day-old females. Contact behavior, play fighting, and locomotor activity differed as a function of age, but were not significantly affected by ethanol exposure. Males demonstrated significantly more contact behavior and play fighting at P42 than at P28 or P70, whereas there were no age-related changes in females. Adult females showed more locomotor activity than adult males. Overall, prenatal ethanol exposure on G15 enhanced social anxiety in females, with these effects seen in adulthood only.
社交行为的改变是人类许多神经发育障碍的一个标志。在啮齿动物中，社交行为会受到产前损伤的影响。其结果取决于损伤的时间以及所测试动物的性别和年龄。边缘系统对社交行为尤为重要，该系统内的神经发生高峰出现在妊娠第15天（G15）。神经元在进入有丝分裂后期时似乎特别容易受到乙醇损伤的影响。我们测试了这样一个假设，即在G15时急性暴露于乙醇会导致显著的社交行为缺陷。因此，在G15时给Long Evans怀孕雌性大鼠注射乙醇（2.9克/千克）或等量的生理盐水。在出生后第28天（P28）、第42天（P42）或第75天（P75），即青春期早期、青春期后期或青年期，对后代进行改良的社交互动测试。产前乙醇暴露减少了P28雌性大鼠的社交探究行为，并使75日龄雌性大鼠的社交偏好转变为社交回避。接触行为、嬉戏打斗和运动活动因年龄而异，但不受乙醇暴露的显著影响。雄性大鼠在P42时的接触行为和嬉戏打斗比在P28或P70时显著更多，而雌性大鼠则没有与年龄相关的变化。成年雌性大鼠的运动活动比成年雄性大鼠更多。总体而言，在G15时产前乙醇暴露增强了雌性大鼠的社交焦虑，且这些影响仅在成年期出现。
