Gestational restraint stress and the developing dopaminergic system: an overview.
Prenatal stress exerts a strong impact on fetal brain development in rats impairing adaptation to stressful conditions, subsequent vulnerability to anxiety, altered sexual function, and enhanced propensity to self-administer drugs. Most of these alterations have been attributed to changes in the neurotransmitter dopamine (DA). In humans; dysfunction of dopaminergic system is associated with development of several neurological disorders, such as Parkinson disease, schizophrenia, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and depression. Evidences provided by animal research, as well as retrospective studies in humans, pointed out that exposure to adverse events in early life can alter adult behaviors and neurochemical indicators of midbrain DA activity, suggesting that the development of the DA system is sensitive to disruption by exposure to early stressors. The purpose of this article is to provide a general overview of published studies and our own study related to the effect of prenatal insults on the development of DA metabolism and biology, focusing mainly in articles involving prenatal-restraint stress protocols in rats. We will also attempt to make a correlation between theses alterations and DA-related pathological processes in humans.
Instituto de Química y Fisicoquímica Biológicas (UBA-CONICET), Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Junín 956, C1113AAD, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Carlos J
CJ
Baier
María R
MR
Katunar
Ezequiela
E
Adrover
María Eugenia
ME
Pallarés
Marta C
MC
Antonelli
D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000196:embryology* / Q000378:metabolism; D004298:Dopamine / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D018811:Maternal Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000196:embryology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications; D051381:Rats; D012149:Restraint, Physical; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009435:Synaptic Transmission
D004298:Dopamine