Hippocampus-dependent memory and allele-specific gene expression in adult offspring of alcohol-consuming dams after neonatal treatment with thyroxin or metformin.

ABSTRACT: Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), the result of fetal alcohol exposure (FAE), affects 2-11% of children worldwide, with no effective treatments. Hippocampus-based learning and memory deficits are key symptoms of FASD. Our previous studies show hypothyroxinemia and hyperglycemia of the alcohol-consuming pregnant rat, which likely affects fetal neurodevelopment. We administered vehicle, thyroxine (T4) or metformin to neonatal rats post FAE and rats were tested in the hippocampus-dependent contextual fear-conditioning paradigm in adulthood. Both T4 and metformin alleviated contextual fear memory deficit induced by FAE, and reversed the hippocampal expression changes in the thyroid hormone-inactivating enzyme, deiodinase-III (Dio3) and insulin-like growth factor 2 (Igf2), genes that are

SUBMITTER: Tunc-Ozcan E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5775940 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature