Prenatal valproic acid exposure decreases neuronal membrane order in rat offspring hippocampus and cortex.
Sprague-Dawley rats were administered 0 or 200 mg/kg of valproic acid (VPA) on days 7-18 of gestation. Controls were pair-fed. On postnatal day 28, analyses of brain tissues were performed on enriched neuronal membrane fractions from cerebellum, hippocampus, and cortex for anisotropy using the membrane probe 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH). No significant differences in membrane anisotropy were noted in the cerebellum, but a significant reduction in anisotropy in the hippocampus and cortex was observed. This change corresponds to a 3-5 degrees C increase in temperature or that produced by other membrane disordering agents (ethanol, phenytoin). An association between membrane anisotropy and functional effects of prenatal VPA exposure is discussed.
Vorhees
C V
CV
Institute for Developmental Research, Children's Hospital Research Foundation, Cincinnati, OH.
Rauch
S L
SL
Hitzemann
R J
RJ
D000818:Animals; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005454:Fluorescence Polarization; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008431:Maternal-Fetal Exchange; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013570:Synaptic Membranes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D014635:Valproic Acid / Q000633:toxicity*
D014635:Valproic Acid