D-072 | Alterations in adrenal glands, stress response and behavior in juvenile rat offspring exposure to infant maltreatment

Development
Author: Ailen Alba Colapietro | Email: ailencolapietro@gmail.com

Ailen A. Colapietro^1°, Jazmín Grillo Balboa^1°, Eleonora Regueira^2°,  Gladys N. Hermida^2°, Verónica Cantarelli^3°, Marina Ponzio^3°, María Eugenia Pallarés^1°,  Silvina L. Diaz^4°, Marta C. Antonelli^1°

^1° Laboratorio de Programación Perinatal del Neurodesarrollo. Instituto de Biología Celular y Neurociencias “Prof. E. De Robertis”. Facultad de Medicina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Buenos Aires, Argentina.
^2° Laboratorio Biología de Anfibios e Histología Animal, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Buenos Aires, Argentina.
^3° Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Córdoba, Argentina.
^4° Laboratorio de Neurogénesis Experimental. Instituto de Biociencias, Biotecnología y Biología Traslacional. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Chronic stressful conditions such as adverse parental care during early stages of development impact on an individual’s health and the way they cope with stressful situations later. Consequently, the alteration of the capacity to cope with subsequent stressors, heightens vulnerability to the development of psychopathologies. In this study, we take advantages of the scarcity-adversity model (SAM) from postnatal days (PND) 8 to 12 in rats to investigate the impact of adverse care conditions on the adrenal glands, stress response and behavior phenotype at juvenile age (PND 21-35). SAM offspring presented histological alterations in the adrenal glands accompanied by greater reactivity to acute stress. At the behavioral level, higher sucrose consumption, more unsupported exploratory behaviors, a passive response in the forced swim and deficient spatial memory were observed in SAM offspring. At the biochemical level, we are analyzing the Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) pathway in the hippocampus of offspring, using the Western blot technique. So far, the results obtained in the ventral region of the hippocampus do not show significant protein variations between the experimental groups; however, we will continue exploring the dorsal region. In conclusion, our findings will contribute to characterize the pre-pubertal period, underscoring the significance of early intervention strategies in mitigating the progression towards psychopathological outcomes in adulthood.