Impairment of long-term potentiation and learning following chronic lead exposure.
Chronic lead exposure during brain development is known to affect functions of the central nervous system. We exposed rats chronically to low levels of lead at different developmental stages in order to determine the most sensitive periods of exposure. Active avoidance learning and hippocampal long-term potentiation were tested in the same animals. If the exposure period comprised the prenatal and the early postnatal phase and was continued into adulthood, learning as well as long-term potentiation were impaired. Starting the exposure not before 16 days postnatally, however, neither affected learning nor hippocampal potentiation. These results reflect the higher vulnerability of the immature as compared to the mature hippocampus to lead-induced functional deficits.
Altmann
L
L
Medical Institute of Environmental Hygiene, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Germany.
Weinsberg
F
F
Sveinsson
K
K
Lilienthal
H
H
Wiegand
H
H
Winneke
G
G
D000818:Animals; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000187:drug effects; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004594:Electrophysiology; D005260:Female; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D007854:Lead / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism / Q000633:toxicity*; D007859:Learning Disabilities / Q000139:chemically induced*; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013997:Time Factors
D007854:Lead