Assessment of scent exposure to pregnant rats and its impact on offspring
2021 年 55 巻 1 号 p. 163-167
詳細
2021 年 55 巻 1 号 p. 163-167
Individuals encounter numerous scents in modern society, such as the scent of a fabric softener or aroma oil. Pregnant women often use aroma oils for their stress-relieving or relaxing effect. However, evidence regarding the negative effects of these scents on offspring is lacking. In this study, a wood-derived scent was exposed to pregnant rats, and the presence or absence of negative effects was investigated in the offspring. No clear effect was observed on bodyweight measured up to 43 days of age to confirm the effect on growth. In the open-field test, only gender difference was significant in locomotor activity and rearing behavior, with males being less active than females, and scent had no effect. Although grooming behavior showed a low score in the scent group, the difference was minor. We investigated the effect on anxiety level with the elevated plus-maze test. Neither an anxiety level enhancement effect nor a reduction effect was observed in the offspring by scent exposure. It can be said that scent exposure during the fetal period does not have a clear impact on offspring in the next-generation, as far as the experiments that we conducted showed. (J Osaka Dent Univ 2021; 55: 163-167)
