title: Induction of maternal behavior by mouse neonates: influence of dam parity and prenatal oxazepam exposure.
abstract: The aim of the present report was to investigate the influence of pup stimulus properties and female parity on mouse maternal behavior. Outbred CD-1 mouse pups, prenatally exposed to either the vehicle (VEH) or oxazepam (OX, 15 mg/kg twice/day on pregnancy days 12-16) and fostered to untreated dams at birth, were offered as a stimulus on postnatal days 4, 6, and 8 to four groups of females that differed in maternal experience: virgin, experienced virgin females, primiparae, and biparae. Maternal behavior was observed during a 15-min session each day. Virgin females were less involved in crouching behavior than primiparae. Pups, age, and prenatal oxazepam showed interactive effects on maternal care, particularly by increasing licking and nest-building activities and decreasing still-out behavior. Moreover, dams receiving younger pups showed high levels of both locomotor activity and rearing. The present findings point to the need for a better understanding of mother-pup interactions in studies aimed at characterizing drug and toxicant effects on both animal and human development.
authors.affiliation: Section of Behavioral Pathophysiology, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Laviola
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Petruzzi
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rankin
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Alleva
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006120:Grooming / Q000187:drug effects; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D051379:Mice; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000187:drug effects; D009425:Nesting Behavior / Q000187:drug effects; D010076:Oxazepam / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010298:Parity / Q000502:physiology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects
chemical_list: D010076:Oxazepam