Effects of diazepam, tofizopam or phenytoin during foetal development on subsequent behaviour and benzodiazepine receptor characteristics in rats.
The development of rats was studied for 3 postnatal weeks after prenatal medication with diazepam (10 mg/kg/day), phenytoin (50 mg/kg/day), or tofizopam (50 mg/kg twice daily) given by gastric intubation from day 7 to 21 of pregnancy. The treatments had no effect on the litter size. There were also no differences between the groups in a battery of tests for development (negative geotaxis, righting reflex, cliff avoidance, rotarod, passive avoidance), but the activity spurt seen at postnatal days 18-21 was missing in pups of diazepam-treated mothers. The number of benzodiazepine receptors and their affinity for tritiated flunitrazepam developed similarly in all of the rat groups. Thus, the transient changes in motor development seen 2-3 weeks after birth of rats whose mothers received diazepam during pregnancy do not seem to be related to changes in ontogenesis of benzodiazepine receptors.
D000818:Animals; D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects; D001569:Benzodiazepines / Q000633:toxicity*; D003975:Diazepam / Q000633:toxicity*; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus / Q000187:drug effects*; D008431:Maternal-Fetal Exchange; D010672:Phenytoin / Q000633:toxicity*; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D011963:Receptors, GABA-A / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D013723:Teratogens
D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents; D011963:Receptors, GABA-A; D013723:Teratogens; D001569:Benzodiazepines; D010672:Phenytoin; D003975:Diazepam; C012582:tofisopam