Gestational and postpartum corticosterone exposure to the dam affects behavioral and endocrine outcome of the offspring in a sexually-dimorphic manner
department or school: Arts, Faculty of
department or school: Other UBC
department or school: Psychology, Department of
data provider: DSpace
identifier citation: Brummelte, S., Lieblich, S. E., & Galea, L. A. M. (2012). Gestational and postpartum corticosterone exposure to the dam affects behavioral and endocrine outcome of the offspring in a sexually-dimorphic manner. Neuropharmacology, 62(1), 406-418.
contributor: Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health
creator: Brummelte, Susanne
creator: Lieblich, Stephanie E.
creator: Galea, Liisa A. M.
issued: 2019-05-15T16:21:43Z
issued: 2012-01
description: Exposure to high levels of glucocorticoids in utero and during the postpartum period has a detrimental effect on brain development. We created an animal model of postpartum stress/depression based on administering high levels of corticosterone (CORT) to the dams during the postpartum period which caused behavioral changes and reduced hippocampal cell proliferation in the offspring. As the consequences of early exposure to glucocorticoids may depend on the dose and the developmental stage of the offspring, the present study was conducted to investigate the effects of low (10mg/kg) or high levels of CORT (40mg/kg) given to dams either during gestation, postpartum or across both gestation and postpartum on the outcome of the offspring. Male and female offspring were weighed throughout the experiment, tested in a series of behavioral tests (forced swim test, open field, elevated plus maze) and basal and restraint stress CORT levels were examined in adolescence or young adulthood. Results show that maternal CORT exposure, regardless of when administered, significantly attenuated body weight gain until adulthood in the offspring. Offspring exposed to low maternal CORT, but not high maternal CORT, during the postpartum had higher basal levels of CORT as young adults. Further, male and female offspring of dams exposed to high maternal CORT in utero showed more depressive-like behavior in the forced swim test, while males of dams exposed to high maternal CORT postpartum exhibited more anxiety-like behavior in the elevated plus maze. Taken together, maternal glucocorticoid exposure have long lasting effects on male and female offspring‟s behavioral and neuroendocrine measures in adolescence and adulthood depending on the time of exposure to glucocorticoids.
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/70174
note: 1 Gestational and postpartum corticosterone exposure to the dam affects behavioral and endocrine outcome of the offspring in a sexually-dimorphic manner Susanne Brummelte1+, Stephanie Lieblich1 and Liisa A.M. Galea1,2*1 Department of Psychology and 2Brain Research Center, University of British Columbia,Vancouver, BC, Canada, *Corresponding author: Liisa A.M. Galea, Ph.D., Professor, The University of British Columbia,2136 West Mall, Vancouver, B.C. V6T 1Z4, Phone: (604) 822-6536, Fax: (604) 822-6923, Email: lgalea@psych.ubc.ca. +Present Address: Developmental Neurosciences & Child Health, Department of Pediatrics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada 2 Abstract Exposure to high levels of glucocorticoids in utero and during the postpartum period has a detrimental effect on brain development. We created an animal model of postpartum stress/depression based on administering high levels of corticosterone (CORT) to the dams during the postpartum period which caused behavioral changes and reduced hippocampal cell proliferation in the offspring. As the consequences of early exposure to glucocorticoids may depend on the dose and the developmental stage of the offspring, the present study was conducted to investigate the effects of low (10mg/kg) or high levels of CORT (40mg/kg) given to dams either during gestation, postpartum or across both gestation and postpartum on the outcome of the offspring. Male and female offspring were weighed throughout the experiment, tested in a series of behavioral tests (forced swim test, open field, elevated plus maze) and basal and restraint stress CORT levels were examined in adolescence or young adulthood. Results show that maternal CORT exposure, regardless of when administered, significantly attenuated body weight gain until adulthood in the offspring. Offspring exposed to low maternal CORT, but not high maternal CORT, during the postpartum had higher basal levels of CORT as young adults. Further, male and female offspri…
has type: Article
has type: Postprint
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0378804
language: eng
peer review status: Reviewed
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
publisher DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2011.08.017
rights: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
rights URI: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
scholar level: Faculty
scholar level: Postdoctoral
subject: Gestation
subject: Prenatal
subject: In utero
subject: Glucocorticoids
subject: Depression
subject: Stress
subject: Sex differences
subject: Early programming
subject: Development
subject: Adolescence
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/70174