title: In utero and lactational exposure to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin decreases serotonin-immunoreactive neurons in raphe nuclei of male mouse offspring.
abstract: Female ddY mice were administered 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) by gavage for 8 weeks prior to pregnancy. In the male breast-fed offspring born to the TCDD-exposed mice, serotonergic neurons in the brainstem were examined using an immunocytochemical method at 42 days of age. In all offspring, a marked decrease in the intensity of immunostaining occurred in all raphe nuclei compared with the control offspring. The number of serotonin-immunoreactive neurons in each raphe nucleus was measured by computer-assisted analysis. Approximately a quarter to half of immunoreactive neurons were detected in the TCDD-exposed offspring raphe nuclei compared with the control offspring. The present findings suggest that in utero and/or lactational TCDD exposure cause a long-lasting change in the serotonergic system in the raphe nuclei of offspring.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Kagoshima University, Sakuragaoka 8-35-1, Kagoshima 890-8520, Japan. kuchiiwa@m.kufm.kagoshima-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kuchiiwa
authors.forename: Shi Bin
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: Itsugi
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Nagatomo
authors.forename: Yasuaki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Akasaki
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Uchida
authors.forename: Masataka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tominaga
authors.forename: Wataru
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hashiguchi
authors.forename: Toshiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kuchiiwa
mesh_terms: D000374:Aggression / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D005260:Female; D007774:Lactation; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008817:Mice, Mutant Strains; D009474:Neurons / Q000737:chemistry*; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins / Q000633:toxicity*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D011903:Raphe Nuclei / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D012701:Serotonin / Q000032:analysis*; D013723:Teratogens / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; D013723:Teratogens; D012701:Serotonin