Zahedi Sara, Hassanpour Shahin, Mashhadyrafie Seeyamak
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Division of Physiology, Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Int J Dev Neurosci. 2025 Feb;85(1):e10409. doi: 10.1002/jdn.10409.
Quercetin is a natural flavonoid and one of the most powerful antioxidants. Due to its wide range of biological properties, it may improve cognitive and physical performance by affecting nervous tissue. The current study is aimed at determining the effect of prenatal exposure to quercetin against methimazole (MMI)-induced hypothyroidism on reflexive motor behavior in mouse offspring. In this study, 40 female mice were mated with 12 fertile male NMRI mice, and the pregnant mice were divided into four groups. Group 1 served as the control, Group 2 received 0.2% MMI in drinking water, Group 3 received 150 mg/kg quercetin via gavage, and Group 4 received both 0.2% MMI in drinking water and 150 mg/kg quercetin via gavage from Days 1 to 9 of gestation. The offspring were assessed for reflexive motor behaviors and conditioned fear. Catalase (CAT), malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) levels in the neonates were also examined. The findings indicated that exposure to quercetin led to improved ambulation, hindlimb suspension, grip strength, front-limb suspension, hindlimb foot angle, negative geotaxis, surface righting, and conditioned fear behaviors in the offspring (p < 0.05). Additionally, quercetin reduced levels of MDA and increased levels of SOD, GPx, and CAT in the brain tissue (p < 0.05). These results suggested that quercetin exposure during pregnancy has positive effect on reflexive motor behaviors and antioxidant levels in mouse offspring.
槲皮素是一种天然黄酮类化合物，也是最强大的抗氧化剂之一。由于其广泛的生物学特性，它可能通过影响神经组织来改善认知和身体表现。当前的研究旨在确定孕期暴露于槲皮素对甲巯咪唑（MMI）诱导的甲状腺功能减退症的影响，以及对小鼠后代反射性运动行为的影响。在本研究中，40只雌性小鼠与12只可育雄性NMRI小鼠交配，怀孕小鼠被分为四组。第1组作为对照组，第2组饮用含0.2%MMI的水，第3组通过灌胃给予150mg/kg槲皮素，第4组在妊娠第1至9天饮用含0.2%MMI的水并通过灌胃给予150mg/kg槲皮素。对后代进行反射性运动行为和条件性恐惧评估。还检测了新生儿过氧化氢酶（CAT）、丙二醛（MDA）、超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）和谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶（GPx）水平。研究结果表明，暴露于槲皮素可改善后代的行走、后肢悬吊、握力、前肢悬吊、后肢足角、负趋地性、表面翻正和条件性恐惧行为（p<0.05）。此外，槲皮素降低了脑组织中MDA的水平，并提高了SOD、GPx和CAT的水平（p<0.05）。这些结果表明，孕期暴露于槲皮素对小鼠后代的反射性运动行为和抗氧化水平具有积极影响。
