Pilant Ananchaipatana-Auitragoon.. Effects of alcohol and taurine supplementation on body growth, maternal behaviors, and offspring hippocampal dependent water maze learning. Doctoral Degree(Neurosciences). Mahidol University. Mahidol University Library and Knowledge Center. : Mahidol University, 2009.
Effects of alcohol and taurine supplementation on body growth, maternal behaviors, and offspring hippocampal dependent water maze learning
ผลกระทบของแอลกอฮอล์และทอรีนต่อการเจริญเติบโตของลูก พฤติกรรมแม่และการเรียนรู้ Water Maze โดยอาศัยสมองส่วนฮิปโปแคมปัส
Abstract:
It is well known that maternal alcohol consumption is teratogenic, resulting in damages from structural deformity to mental retardation and disruption of learning and memory. This research investigated effects of alcohol on body growth, learning and memory of the affected offspring. Taurine, a conditionally essential amino acid, can protect nervous tissues against alcohol damage and is also crucial for development. Pregnant mice received treatments of alcohol 0%, 5%, 10%, 20% and 30% prepared fresh daily in a nutritionally balanced liquid diet with 25% solid food and water ad libitum. Taurine at 1g/kg body weight was prepared in 10ml drinking water either to mothers until weaning or to offspring from weaning. Maternal food intake, weight and behaviors were monitored. Offspring body weights were recorded. Adult offspring were tested on learning and memory using a water maze during the course of a 6-day task. Percentage of escapes, escape latency and learning curves were analyzed. It was found that alcohol retarded offspring body growth and disrupted the process of learning and memory. Taurine was not protective to body growth but was shown to protect the learning when available in early stages of the development. It can be concluded that taurine is protective against alcohol damage when given early in life. Although offspring body growth was delayed, the offspring was able to catch up with the growth once having reached adult age. With taurine available intrauterine and through the mothers milk during early development, the learning and memory processes were preserved.