PMID- 15166658
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20040909
LR  - 20190827
IS  - 0145-6008 (Print)
IS  - 0145-6008 (Linking)
VI  - 28
IP  - 5
DP  - 2004 May
TI  - Fetal learning with ethanol: correlations between maternal hypothermia during 
      pregnancy and neonatal responsiveness to chemosensory cues of the drug.
PG  - 805-15
AB  - BACKGROUND: Fetuses learn about ethanol odor when the drug is present in the 
      amniotic fluid. Prenatal learning comprising ethanol's chemosensory cues also 
      suggests an acquired association between ethanol's chemosensory and 
      postabsorptive properties. Ethanol-related thermal disruptions have been 
      implicated as a significant component of the drug's unconditioned properties. In 
      the present study, ethanol-induced thermal changes were analyzed in pregnant rats 
      subjected to a moderate ethanol dose. This thermal response was later tested for 
      its correlation with the responsiveness of the progeny to ethanol and nonethanol 
      chemosensory stimuli. METHODS: During gestational day (GD) 14, pregnant rats were 
      subjected to a minor surgical procedure to place a subcutaneous telemetric 
      thermal sensor in the nape of the neck. During GDs 17 to 20, females received a 
      daily intragastric administration of ethanol (2 g/kg) or water, using solutions 
      kept at room temperature. Maternal body temperatures were recorded before and 
      after (4 consecutive hours) the administration of water or ethanol. Newborns 
      representative of both prenatal treatments were tested in terms of behavioral 
      activity elicited by the smell of ethanol or of a novel odorant (cineole). A 
      third group of pups were tested in response to unscented air stimulation. 
      RESULTS: Ethanol administration during late gestation induced reliable maternal 
      hypothermia, a thermal disruption greater than that observed in water-treated 
      females. It was systematically observed that maternal ethanol-induced hypothermia 
      negatively correlated with neonatal motor reactivity elicited by ethanol 
      olfactory stimulation. No other significant correlations were observed in terms 
      of responsiveness to cineole or to unscented air in animals prenatally exposed to 
      ethanol or water. CONCLUSIONS: In conjunction with prior research, the present 
      results indicate that fetal ethanol exposure may yield learning of an association 
      between ethanol's sensory and unconditioned properties. Ethanol-induced 
      hypothermia during late gestation seems to represent a significant component of 
      ethanol's unconditioned consequences. Specifically, ethanol-related thermal 
      disruptions in the womb are highly predictive of neonatal responsiveness to 
      ethanol's chemosensory cues that are known to be processed by the near-term 
      fetus.
FAU - Abate, Paula
AU  - Abate P
AD  - Instituto de Investigacion Medica Mercedes y Martin Ferreyra, INIMEC-CONICET, 
      Argentina.
FAU - Pepino, M Yanina
AU  - Pepino MY
FAU - Spear, Norman E
AU  - Spear NE
FAU - Molina, Juan C
AU  - Molina JC
LA  - eng
GR  - 1R01AA11960/AA/NIAAA NIH HHS/United States
GR  - 1R01AA13098/AA/NIAAA NIH HHS/United States
GR  - 1R21AA12762/AA/NIAAA NIH HHS/United States
PT  - Comparative Study
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
PT  - Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.
PL  - England
TA  - Alcohol Clin Exp Res
JT  - Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research
JID - 7707242
RN  - 3K9958V90M (Ethanol)
SB  - IM
MH  - Animals
MH  - Animals, Newborn
MH  - *Cues
MH  - Ethanol/*pharmacology
MH  - Female
MH  - Fetus/*drug effects/physiology
MH  - Hypothermia/*chemically induced/physiopathology
MH  - Learning/*drug effects/physiology
MH  - Pregnancy
MH  - Rats
MH  - Rats, Wistar
MH  - Smell/drug effects/physiology
EDAT- 2004/05/29 05:00
MHDA- 2004/09/10 05:00
CRDT- 2004/05/29 05:00
PHST- 2004/05/29 05:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2004/09/10 05:00 [medline]
PHST- 2004/05/29 05:00 [entrez]
AID - 00000374-200405000-00018 [pii]
AID - 10.1097/01.alc.0000125354.15808.24 [doi]
PST - ppublish
SO  - Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2004 May;28(5):805-15. doi: 
      10.1097/01.alc.0000125354.15808.24.