The effect of exposure to diazepam through the placenta or through the mother's milk. Histological findings in slices of rat brain.
Exposure to diazepam during the prenatal or early postnatal developmental period has been reported to result in later behavioural deficits. In the present study morphological changes in the brains of rats that were exposed to diazepam (DZP) prenatally or through the mother's milk postnatally were investigated. The results showed that prolonged prenatal exposure (16 days) to diazepam (10 mg/kg) resulted in characteristic and extensive pathological changes, i.e. gliosis and perivascular cuffing in the brains of the rats. These changes could be observed under the light microscope a long time after exposure to the drug had been terminated. Limiting the prenatal exposure to a single trimester of 7 days reduced somewhat the number of lesions but did not prevent their occurrence. Rats exposed to diazepam postnatally through the mothers' milk showed very few lesions.
D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D003975:Diazepam / Q000633:toxicity*; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D008431:Maternal-Fetal Exchange; D008892:Milk / Q000378:metabolism*; D010920:Placenta / Q000378:metabolism*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains
D003975:Diazepam