Intrauterine growth restriction increases impulsive behavior and is associated with altered dopamine transmission in both medial prefrontal and orbitofrontal cortex in female rats

Publication date: Available online 14 March 2019Source: Physiology & BehaviorAuthor(s): Márcio Bonesso Alves, Daniela Pereira Laureano, Roberta Dalle Molle, Tania Diniz Machado, Ana Paula de Ascenção Salvador, Patrícia Maidana Miguel, Derek Lupinsky, Carla Dalmaz, Patrícia Pelufo SilveiraAbstractRecent studies have implicated a role for impulsivity in the altered eating behaviors and the increased risk for obesity consistently associated with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). Changes in dopamine transmission within prefrontal areas are believed to contribute to these adverse outcomes. Here we investigated the impulsive behavior toward a delayed reward and evaluated dopamine levels and its receptors in the medial prefrontal (mPFC) and orbitofrontal (OFC) cortex of female adult rats exposed to IUGR. From day 10 of pregnancy and until birth, Sprague–Dawley dams received either an ad libitum (Adlib) or a 50% food-restricted (FR) diet. At birth, all pups were adopted by Adlib mothers, generating the groups Adlib/Adlib (control) and FR/Adlib (intrauterine growth-restricted). Adult impulsive behavior was evaluated using a Tolerance to Delay of Reward Task. In vivo dopamine responses to sweet food intake were measured by voltammetry, and D1, D2 and DAT levels were accessed by Western Blot. Animals from FR group showed a pronounced aversion to delayed rewards. DA response to sweet food was found to be blunted in the mPFC of FR animals, whereas in the OFC, the DA levels ap...
Source: Physiology and Behavior - Category: Physiology Source Type: research