Prenatal bisphenol A exposure is associated with medial amygdala neuron hyperresponsiveness to predator odor in rats

Abstract

Perinatal exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) causes several alterations in brain function and behavior. In previous studies, we showed that prenatal treatment with low-level BPA impaired gender-specific behavior, enhanced depression-like behavior, and augmented behavioral responses to predator odor in rats. On this premise, we hypothesized that BPA-treated rats were more susceptible to predator odor stress. To test the potential neural mechanism underlying this effect, we conducted an electrophysiological study of neurons in the medial amygdala—a regional component of the olfactory pathway with high estrogen and androgen receptor expression, and thus a potential target of BPA—in rats exposed to BPA. Extracellular recordings were obtained during the presentation of 3 plant odors and 3 predator odorants. Odor-responsive neurons in BPA-exposed rats showed greater activity in response to fox odor than did those in control rats. This finding complements the results of our previous behavioral study in which BPA-exposed rats exhibited enhanced avoidance behavior in response to fox odor. Given the close relationship between olfactory signaling and the stress response system, we suspect that BPA modifies the olfactory pathway at the level of the medial amygdala and thus modulates the corresponding stress response.