Prenatal cocaine and morphine alter brain cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) activity in rat pups.
Pregnant rats received daily injections of saline, cocaine (20 mg/kg), morphine (2 mg/kg), or the combination of both drugs, on days 13-20 of gestation. Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) activity was then measured in the resulting pups on postnatal days 1, 7, 14 and 28. Cocaine resulted in a time dependent increase in brain Cdk5 activity which peaked on day 14. Morphine, in contrast, induced a decrease in Cdk5 activity which was also maximal on day 14. Combined administration of the two drugs led to smaller increases than those seen after cocaine alone. These findings demonstrate that prenatal drug exposure can modify postnatal activity of Cdk5 in the brain and raise the possibility that alterations in Cdk5 may play a role in some of the neural and behavioral effects produced by these treatments.
Bhat
Rama
R
Department of Pediatrics, M/C856, University of Illinois at Chicago, 840 S. Wood Street, Chicago, IL-60612, United States. ramabhat@uic.edu <ramabhat@uic.edu>
Chari
Gopal
G
Rao
Ravi
R
Wirtshafter
David
D
D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D015153:Blotting, Western / Q000379:methods; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000201:enzymology; D003042:Cocaine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051360:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 5 / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D009020:Morphine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000201:enzymology / Q000473:pathology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
D009020:Morphine; D051360:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 5; D003042:Cocaine