Quetiapine Reverses the Behavior and Myelination in Alcohol-Exposed Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Offspring Mice via ERK1/2 Signaling

Abstract

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a glucose metabolism abnormality that first emerges during pregnancy and may negatively affect the behavioral and neurodevelopmental outcomes of offspring. Quetiapine (QUE) has been shown to promote differentiation of oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) and protect oligodendrocytes and myelination. To explore the effects of QUE on improving the expression of conditioned place preference (CPP) and myelination in the infralimbic cortex (IL) of the medial prefrontal cortex in alcohol-exposed GDM offspring mice, we evaluated CPP expression in 5-week-old alcohol-exposed GDM offspring and treated them with QUE and the extracellular-regulated protein kinase (ERK) inhibitor U0126. Immunohistochemical staining compared the numbers of mature oligodendrocytes, OPCs, and myelin expression levels. Immunofluorescence staining was employed to examine OPC differentiation and the activation of the ERK1/2 signaling pathway. In GDM offspring, CPP expression increased considerably following alcohol exposure, whereas early treatment with QUE or U0126 significantly decreased CPP expression. Meanwhile, alcohol exposure resulted in substantial activation of the ERK1/2 signaling pathway within OPCs in the IL region, as well as a substantial reduction in OPC differentiation, mature oligodendrocyte count, and myelin expression. QUE or U0126 inhibited the activation of the ERK1/2 signaling pathway within OPCs in the IL region of alcohol-exposed GDM offspring and markedly restored OPC differentiation, mature oligodendrocyte numbers, and myelin expression. Collectively, QUE enhanced the differentiation of OPCs in the IL region of GDM offspring after alcohol exposure by regulating the overactivation of the ERK1/2 signaling pathway, thus partially reversing myelination loss and ultimately improving CPP expression.