title: Low dose prenatal ethanol exposure induces anxiety-like behaviour and alters dendritic morphology in the basolateral amygdala of rat offspring.
abstract: Prenatal exposure to high levels of alcohol is strongly associated with poor cognitive outcomes particularly in relation to learning and memory. It is also becoming more evident that anxiety disorders and anxiety-like behaviour can be associated with prenatal alcohol exposure. This study used a rat model to determine if prenatal exposure to a relatively small amount of alcohol would result in anxiety-like behaviour and to determine if this was associated with morphological changes in the basolateral amygdala. Pregnant Sprague Dawley rats were fed a liquid diet containing either no alcohol (Control) or 6% (vol/vol) ethanol (EtOH) throughout gestation. Male and Female offspring underwent behavioural testing at 8 months (Adult) or 15 months (Aged) of age. Rats were perfusion fixed and brains were collected at the end of behavioural testing for morphological analysis of pyramidal neuron number and dendritic morphology within the basolateral amygdala. EtOH exposed offspring displayed anxiety-like behaviour in the elevated plus maze, holeboard and emergence tests. Although sexually dimorphic behaviour was apparent, sex did not impact anxiety-like behaviour induced by prenatal alcohol exposure. This increase in anxiety - like behaviour could not be attributed to a change in pyramidal cell number within the BLA but rather was associated with an increase in dendritic spines along the apical dendrite which is indicative of an increase in synaptic connectivity and activity within these neurons. This study is the first to link increases in anxiety like behaviour to structural changes within the basolateral amygdala in a model of prenatal ethanol exposure. In addition, this study has shown that exposure to even a relatively small amount of alcohol during development leads to long term alterations in anxiety-like behaviour.
authors: School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia.
authors: Carlie L
authors: CL
authors: Cullen
authors: Thomas H J
authors: TH
authors: Burne
authors: Nickolas A
authors: NA
authors: Lavidis
authors: Karen M
authors: KM
authors: Moritz
mesh_terms: D000679:Amygdala / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D000818:Animals; D001007:Anxiety / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects*; D003712:Dendrites / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D000431:Ethanol; D005260:Female; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000187:drug effects; D009035:Mothers; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol
references: Ann Med. 1990;22(5):319-25
references: 2291839
references: Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2003 Apr;60(4):377-85
references: 12695315
references: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2008 Apr 8;105(14):5573-8
references: 18391224
references: J Neurosci Methods. 1985 Aug;14(3):149-67
references: 2864480
references: J Neurosci. 1995 Mar;15(3 Pt 2):2312-27
references: 7891169
references: Alcohol. 2012 Sep;46(6):577-84
references: 22749340
references: Alcohol. 1994 Mar-Apr;11(2):147-56
references: 8204201
references: Mol Cell Neurosci. 1990 Oct;1(2):168-77
references: 19912768
references: Curr Opin Neurobiol. 2000 Oct;10(5):582-6
references: 11084320
references: Neurotoxicol Teratol. 1995 Jul-Aug;17(4):437-43
references: 7565490
references: Addict Biol. 2011 Apr;16(2):238-50
references: 21182574
references: Pediatrics. 2007 Feb;119(2):e426-34
references: 17272604
references: Eur J Pharmacol. 2003 Feb 28;463(1-3):35-53
references: 12600701
references: Hippocampus. 2000;10(1):94-110
references: 10706221
references: Lancet. 1973 Jun 9;1(7815):1267-71
references: 4126070
references: J Neurochem. 2007 May;101(4):1018-30
references: 17254015
references: J Neurosci. 2004 Apr 7;24(14):3471-9
references: 15071094
references: Behav Brain Res. 2004 Oct 5;154(2):549-55
references: 15313044
references: Metab Brain Dis. 1994 Dec;9(4):291-322
references: 7898398
references: J Neurosci. 1995 Mar;15(3 Pt 2):2301-11
references: 7891168
references: Alcohol. 2001 Jan;23(1):49-57
references: 11282452
references: Behav Brain Res. 1988 Mar;27(3):247-57
references: 3358862
references: Neurosci Res. 2006 Dec;56(4):400-8
references: 16978724
references: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1998 May;22(3):685-96
references: 9622451
references: Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 2006 Oct;85(2):345-55
references: 17049371
references: Pediatrics. 2009 Feb;123(2):e289-96
references: 19171582
references: Alcohol Alcohol. 2010 Jul-Aug;45(4):312-9
references: 20543181
references: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2010 Apr;34(4):633-45
references: 20102562
references: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1982 Fall;6(4):523-31
references: 6758624
references: Alcohol Alcohol. 2000 Sep-Oct;35(5):509-19
references: 11022026
references: Reprod Fertil Dev. 2012;24(6):859-70
references: 22781937
references: Neurobiol Aging. 1993 Jul-Aug;14(4):275-85
references: 8367009
references: Neurotoxicol Teratol. 1989 Sep-Oct;11(5):493-507
references: 2593988
references: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2011 Jan;35(1):69-82
references: 20958332
references: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2001 Sep;25(9):1383-92
references: 11584160
references: Behav Brain Res. 1991 Jan 31;42(1):49-56
references: 2029344
references: Br J Pharmacol. 1978 Jan;62(1):19-24
references: 563752
references: Brain Res. 1995 Nov 20;699(2):250-9
references: 8616628
references: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2003 Dec;27(12):2009-16
references: 14691390
references: Arch Dis Child. 2008 Sep;93(9):732-7
references: 17704098
references: Neurobehav Toxicol Teratol. 1983 May-Jun;5(3):363-6
references: 6877477
references: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1997 May;21(3):424-9
references: 9161601
references: Synapse. 2010 Feb;64(2):127-35
references: 19771589
references: Child Care Health Dev. 2011 Sep;37(5):711-8
references: 20854446
references: J Neurosci. 2007 Apr 18;27(16):4482-91
references: 17442833
references: Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 2005 Nov;82(3):549-58
references: 16359722
references: Psychopharmacologia. 1975 Oct 14;44(1):47-51
references: 1197579
references: Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2005;29(8):1225-41
references: 16099042
references: J Neurosci Methods. 1998 Jan 31;79(1):1-4
references: 9531453
references: Brain Res. 2009 Dec 11;1302:194-204
references: 19765555
references: Am J Psychiatry. 2006 Jun;163(6):1061-5
references: 16741207
references: Semin Clin Neuropsychiatry. 2000 Jul;5(3):177-90
references: 11291013
references: Behav Brain Res. 2010 Mar 5;207(2):290-304
references: 19852984
references: Neurochem Res. 2003 Nov;28(11):1735-42
references: 14584827
references: Brain Res. 2007 Jul 2;1156:152-67
references: 17540347
references: Exp Biol Med (Maywood). 2005 Jun;230(6):394-406
references: 15956769
references: Neuropharmacology. 2012 Mar;62(4):1607-18
references: 22019722
references: Alcohol. 2003 May;30(1):67-74
references: 12878276
references: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2004 Mar;28(3):497-507
references: 15084908
references: Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2001 Feb;25(2):283-7
references: 11236844
references: J Paediatr Child Health. 2003 Sep-Oct;39(7):528-33
references: 12969208
references: Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 1996 Dec;55(4):515-20
references: 8981581
references: Neurotoxicol Teratol. 1991 Jul-Aug;13(4):369-76
references: 1921916
references: Neuroscience. 2004;128(4):667-73
references: 15464275
references: Neuroscience. 2010 Oct 27;170(3):749-57
references: 20688136
references: Eur J Pharmacol. 2001 Dec 14;433(1):91-9
references: 11755138
references: Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2008 Nov;1144:154-75
references: 19076375
references: Annu Rev Neurosci. 2000;23:155-84
references: 10845062
references: Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2006 Oct;31(9):1046-56
references: 16934947
references: J Neurosci. 2002 Aug 1;22(15):6810-8
references: 12151561
references: Am J Psychiatry. 1998 Apr;155(4):552-4
references: 9546004
references: Pharmacol Ther. 2003 May;98(2):171-95
references: 12725868
references: Nature. 1995 Jun 22;375(6533):682-4
references: 7791901
references: J Comp Neurol. 1995 Nov 13;362(2):283-92
references: 8576439
references: Breastfeed Rev. 2008 Mar;16(1):17-24
references: 18546573