TY - JOUR
T1 - Pre-reproductive maternal enrichment influences offspring developmental trajectories
T2 - Motor behavior and neurotrophin expression
AU - Caporali, Paola
AU - Cutuli, Debora
AU - Gelfo, Francesca
AU - Laricchiuta, Daniela
AU - Foti, Francesca
AU - De Bartolo, Paola
AU - Mancini, Laura
AU - Angelucci, Francesco
AU - Petrosini, Laura
PY - 2014/5/30
Y1 - 2014/5/30
N2 - Environmental enrichment is usually applied immediately after weaning or in adulthood, with strong effects on CNS anatomy and behavior. To examine the hypothesis that a pre-reproductive environmental enrichment of females could affect the motor development of their offspring, female rats were reared in an enriched environment from weaning to sexual maturity, while other female rats used as controls were reared under standard conditions. Following mating with standard-reared males, all females were housed individually. To evaluate the eventual transgenerational influence of positive pre-reproductive maternal experiences, postural and motor development of male pups was analyzed from birth to weaning. Moreover, expression of Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor and Nerve Growth Factor in different brain regions was evaluated at birth and weaning. Pre-reproductive environmental enrichment of females affected the offspring motor development, as indicated by the earlier acquisition of complex motor abilities displayed by the pups of enriched females. The earlier acquisition of motor abilities was associated with enhanced neurotrophin levels in striatum and cerebellum. In conclusion, maternal positive experiences were transgenerationally transmitted, and influenced offspring phenotype at both behavioral and biochemical levels.
AB - Environmental enrichment is usually applied immediately after weaning or in adulthood, with strong effects on CNS anatomy and behavior. To examine the hypothesis that a pre-reproductive environmental enrichment of females could affect the motor development of their offspring, female rats were reared in an enriched environment from weaning to sexual maturity, while other female rats used as controls were reared under standard conditions. Following mating with standard-reared males, all females were housed individually. To evaluate the eventual transgenerational influence of positive pre-reproductive maternal experiences, postural and motor development of male pups was analyzed from birth to weaning. Moreover, expression of Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor and Nerve Growth Factor in different brain regions was evaluated at birth and weaning. Pre-reproductive environmental enrichment of females affected the offspring motor development, as indicated by the earlier acquisition of complex motor abilities displayed by the pups of enriched females. The earlier acquisition of motor abilities was associated with enhanced neurotrophin levels in striatum and cerebellum. In conclusion, maternal positive experiences were transgenerationally transmitted, and influenced offspring phenotype at both behavioral and biochemical levels.
KW - BDNF
KW - Environmental enrichment
KW - Maternal experiences
KW - Motor development
KW - NGF
KW - Pups
KW - Rats
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U2 - 10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00195
DO - 10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00195
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84901823926
VL - 8
JO - Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience
JF - Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience
SN - 1662-5153
IS - MAY
M1 - 195
ER -