Prenatal ethanol exposure impairs sensory processing and habituation to visual stimuli, effects normalized by enrichment of postnatal environmental.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) often show processing deficits in all sensory modalities. Using an operant light reinforcement model, we tested whether prenatal ethanol exposure (PE) alters operant responding to elicit a contingent sensory stimulus-light onset (turning on the light) and habituation to this behavior in rats. We also explored whether postnatal environmental enrichment could ameliorate PE-induced deficits.

Methods

Pregnant Sprague Dawley rats were gavaged twice/day with 0 or 3 g/kg/treatment ethanol (15% w/v) during gestational days 8-20, mimicking second-trimester heavy PE in humans. The offspring were reared in a standard housing condition or an enriched condition. Adult male and female offspring underwent an operant light

SUBMITTER: Wang R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9122102 | biostudies-literature | 2022 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature